Some Rather Confusing Turns of Events
by Forohe Toxophilus
Summary: Mungojerrie never expected to be working for the Napoleon of Crime - and he certainly never expected to fall in love! When plans fall to pieces, where will they be left? Chapter 15 is up. Finally.
1. Lies

Chapter One- Lies

Chapter One- Lies.

A calico tom skittered across the edges of an alleyway, wary of any Pollicles that might be looking for a bite. He took a quick glance behind himself just to reassure his wracked nerves that he wasn't being followed. Two particular Pollicles had been hunting the poor tom for two days, allowing him no period of rest, but he wasn't in the mood to become a dog's meal.

"Whoohgh…" he sighed a breath of relief when he came to his normal hiding spot, a wrecked TV that was thrown out a window quite some time ago.

"Hi there, little bite." came a half snarling voice from over the calico's shoulder.

He whipped around to come face to jaws with one of the rather large Pollicles. He instinctively launched himself backwards towards his little safe house, but another Pollicle was waiting in front of it.

"Cripes, don' you damned Pollicles 'ave somewhere else t' be?!" he yelled in frustration and fear, bolting away from the two lumbering beasts.

The dogs ran in pursuit of him into a street at the mouth of the alley. The calico heard a loud _"Roowwrr!"_ and a sickening thud behind him. He turned about and saw a human racing out of a car over to one of the Pollicles, who was lying twisted on the asphalt road and the other looking furiously at the tom.

"HA!" he shouted triumphantly at the still living Pollicle. "I'm jus' too good fer ya! You'll nevah catch me!" he managed to say between his laborious breaths of the sprint.

But, strangely enough, the living Pollicle was smirking at him. He slowly shifted his head to the right to see a truck roaring at him with no indication of slowing. He wanted to run, but his legs just couldn't find the will for another dash. The calico tom just stood in the face of death, paralyzed with fear.

Suddenly, a ginger cat leapt out of a garbage pile on the Pollicle's side of the street. He grabbed the stunned tom and vaulted to the other alleyway, narrowly missing the truck's rampage.

"Eeyow!" the calico cried as the truck missed his tail by millimeters.

Once the two landed on the other side of the street, the ginger tried to set the tom down, but he had a death grip on the other tom's shoulders.

"You can let go now, young tom." said the ginger cat in a reassuring voice.

"Huh?" replied the calico, still shocked from his near death encounter. "Oh, yeah. Sorry bou' that." He slowly let go of his savior's shoulders and set his paws gently on the ground.

The ginger cat sat down on a folded-up newspaper that was lying on the pavement. "So," started the ginger, "You are?"

"Me, sir?" asked the calico. "I'm Mungojerrie. An' you?"

"I'm Macavity." the ginger replied simply.

"You say tha' as if I'm s'posed t' know who you are."

Macavity let loose a hideously cracked laugh, as though he hadn't had water for several days. "Well, I'm certainly surprised you don't know that one. Let's see…" The ginger stroked his chin for a second, as if to emphasize a point. "How about 'The Hidden Paw'?" Mungojerrie slowly shook his head.

"Damn," groaned Macavity. "Not even 'The Napoleon of Crime'?"

Mungojerrie thought for a second, then suddenly brightened as he nodded and said, "Yeah, yeah, I know that 'un!" He paused, and then turned to stare at Macavity for a moment, nonplussed. "Are you sayin' that I was jus' saved by the most notorious cat-napper in all o' London?"

"I mean to say," replied Macavity.

Mungojerrie blinked twice, then fell over onto a pile of rubbish, asleep as two days of exhaustion finally caught up with him. Macavity chuckled to himself and hoisted the young tom over his shoulder, walking further into the alleyway.

"It's about time I found a kit that I can use," Macavity whispered, grinning to himself.

Mungojerrie woke up in a partially comfortable bed. It was only partially comfortable because of the scratchy covers. But the softness of the mat was acceptable and he thanked the Everlasting Cat that he was able to sleep peacefully. He looked onto a small pile of rubble, probably from the skylight that brightened his room. The tom noticed a piece of paper on top of the rubble and read it.

_If you're awake, come to the main hall and talk to me. I'll be waiting. _

_Macavity_

Mungojerrie stared at the letter for several moments, trying to interpret the scrawled note. When he was able to read it (which took quite some time), he scratched his head in confusion. _Why would Macavity wan' t' talk with me?_ he wondered.

"Oh, well," he mumbled. "I'd migh' as well go down and talk with 'im. I mean, he _did_ save me life, and then gave me a place t' sleep."

He meandered through the corridors of Macavity's lair, trying to find the 'Throne Room' he had heard about from other cats' stories about the Napoleon of Crime. He glanced down a hallway to his right, and saw Macavity sitting, seemingly asleep, at the end of it on a chair adorned with golden strands of metal, in accord with pearls and silver. _Wow,_ Mungojerrie thought. _Tha' cat really has things working for 'im._

He swiftly walked into the main hall and stared into the enticing space. A massive table was set out in front of the throne upon which Macavity sat. The table was large enough to hold a dozen, nay, a score of cats. And upon it was large juicy steaks, steaming potatoes, pot roasted chicken, fresh tuna, all the comforts of royalty. The scent overwhelmed Mungojerrie's senses and sent his stomach into flips.

"So I see you'd like some lunch." said Macavity unexpectedly, sending Mungojerrie into a five foot leap into the air.

"Umm…" stuttered Mungojerrie, still recovering from his near heart failure. "If you don' mind?" he replied, his face quickly turning into the most innocent grin he had ever done.

"No, no, of course I don't mind," chuckled Macavity. "Help yourself."

Mungojerrie quickly grabbed a piece of steak and bit into it. He drooled over the piece he held after swallowing the first one. "Now this is what I call steak!" he lavished over the meat, and quickly had another bite.

"I'm glad you like it. And I must admit, it does look rather appetizing, other than the fact that it's poisoned." informed Macavity.

Mungojerrie's eyes immediately widened and he spit the piece he was chewing out and started trying to regurgitate the piece he had already swallowed.

"HAHAHAHAHA!" roared Macavity. "You fell for it! Oh, that was _so_ worth the wait! HAHA!" Macavity almost rolled out of his throne from laughing so hard. "It's not poisoned, you imbecile! Why would I save someone just to poison them, if I could use them?! Haahaha!"

Macavity continued maniacally laughing as Mungojerrie picked himself off the floor. Macavity's convulsions from the insane joke slowly died down as Mungojerrie stared at him with a stern face.

"What?" Macavity asked, almost innocently. "You have to admit that was hilarious! Ha!"

"Yes, _quite_ funny," responded Mungojerrie, not amused at all by the crime lord's joke.

"Alright, I can see that you aren't in a good mood," said Macavity, as if he was talking to a kitten. "Go ahead eat up. I am sure that you are _extremely_ hungry."

Mungojerrie finished his steak cautiously. He put down the bone and looked at Macavity. "Tha' was good," he said quietly. "My compliments t' the chef."

"Why, thank you," replied a voice from the back hall.

Mungojerrie glanced over to the darkened walkway. A black cat with a white patch of fur over her left eye appeared from the hallway.

"Ahhh, yes," Macavity sighed. "Mungojerrie, please meet Hera, my chef."

Mungojerrie stared at the chef once she moved into better light. His jaw dropped to the floor as he saw the queen slide gracefully to his side to gather up the plate he had used.

"See Macavity?" she stated. "Lots of people like my food, not just the prisoners."

"That's only because he hasn't eaten in six days," Macavity grumbled and crossed his arms. "It still tastes like Pollicle shite to me."

"Nice t' make your acquaintance, Miss. And I must say, this is the best food I've ever had in my life," Mungojerrie said as he bowed and kissed her hand, ignoring Macavity's comment.

"Macavity, you picked up _such_ a gentleman," said Hera seductively, as she gracefully skated around his throne.

"Yes, fine, just get back to your job, kitten," he hissed at her.

Hera bit her thumb at him, then smiled and waved slightly at Mungojerrie, waltzing back into the kitchen.

"And now, I have something to ask you, Mungojerrie," piped up Macavity, getting Mungojerrie's attention away from Hera.

"Anything, sir," he replied, averting his gaze back to Macavity.

Macavity motioned to a guard in the left corridor. The guard scuttled down the hall, and Mungojerrie heard a terrified scream.

The guard reappeared with a small calico queen whose eyes were wider than that of Mungojerrie's when Macavity played the joke on him.

"Have you ever seen this little queen before?" Macavity asked quite sincerely.

Mungojerrie stared at the calico queen. She would be cute if it wasn't for her being frightened out of her skin. Her features were thin and bruised, and she needed a good bathing. Her coat was similar to that of his own, but slightly lighter in the base colour. He immediately wanted to try and get her out, but he knew Macavity would see through his lie, even if he tried to enforce it. He swallowed hard and answered honestly, "No sir, I have never seen her before, or not that I can recall."

"A pity." responded Macavity. "All right. Bring her to the execution room, Tamerang. I will be there shortly." he ordered the guard, whose name was Tamerang.

Tamerang shot an angry look to Mungojerrie, then said something softly to the queen, as if he was comforting her.

"WAIT!" shrieked Mungojerrie.

Macavity looked at the tom. "What is it? Have you seen her before?" he asked slyly.

Mungojerrie knew that he was done for, but he had to try if it meant the young queen would get out of it alive. He swallowed again and replied, "Yes sir, now tha' I got a good look at her, I do recall seein' her once."

"Where?" asked Macavity, inquisitively.

Mungojerrie knew he shouldn't have dug himself into a lie, and now he had to dig deeper. "In Kingston Square, sir. I think she went into an alleyway across the street from a house I was robbin', maybe ten days back?"

The queen's eyes darted from him to Macavity, and her eyes widened more, but in surprise, not fear. She stared at him, as if to say, _What in the name of the Everlasting Cat are you doing?_

Macavity chuckled. "I'm sure." He looked back to Tamerang. "Take her back to her cell." Tamerang left, patting the almost sobbing calico on the back as he led her back to her cell.

Macavity then turned to Mungojerrie. "Good lie," he stated flatly. "You almost had me convinced there, but when you added the ten days back, I knew you were lying."

"Huh?"

Macavity sighed. "Ten days ago, she was in a cell, and I was tracking you. You never robbed a house in that time. And she never escaped her cell. Very impressive to come up with that on such short notice though."

Mungojerrie looked to the floor, dejected. "So you are going t' kill her?"

"No." replied Macavity, surprisingly. "I think that I'll pair you two up as crime partners. The way you can play off of her is simply incredible."

"Wha'?" asked Mungojerrie, stunned. "How do you know tha' I could do tha' all the time?"

"I could kill her, though that would be wasting _such_ a prospective young queen," Macavity sighed, stoking his chin and glancing at Mungojerrie.

"NO!" Mungojerrie cried. "Erm, I mean no, don't do tha'. She certainly is a fine piece of kit," he added in quickly, hoping to please Macavity.

"So you will pair up with her?" asked Macavity.

"Yessir, I will, sir," replied Mungojerrie in complete honesty. "But she does look like she needs some food and a good bath. And it quite possible tha' she needs to be taught how to steal efficiently," he added, trying very hard to sound informed.

"Yes, all right, then," agreed Macavity, rolling his eyes at all the young tom's 'demands'. "Hera will feed her some of the Pollicle shite that you seem to love so much, and you can clean her up. Go and tell Tamerang to let her out of her cell."

"Thank you, sir." Mungojerrie bowed and went to the cell corridor.

The black and white cat called Tamerang stood at the end of the hallway, right by the calico queen's cell door.

"So, you on the good side of Macavity yet?" asked Tamerang quietly as he tossed the keys to Mungojerrie.

Mungojerrie stopped in his tracks. "Why do you care?" he asked, perplexed.

"'Cause if you are, then you can talk him into giving better living conditions for these poor prisoners," Tamerang replied guiltlessly.

"And why would I do tha', considering tha' you probably beat this poor queen?" Mungojerrie asked Tamerang, narrowing his eyes as he pointed to the calico queen huddled in the corner of the cell.

"I did no such thing!" Tamerang hissed, ears flattening. "Macavity did that to her. I'm the only reason she lasted this long, giving her my evening meals and comforting her and all!"

The queen looked up and nodded her head, but did not say a word.

"Oh." Mungojerrie hushed quickly. "Sorry. I didn't know."

"Apology accepted," smiled Tamerang. "Now, let's get her down to Hera. Afterwards, I'll help you clean her up."

"That sounds good," agreed Mungojerrie. "Say, do you know her name?"

"No," replied Tamerang dimly.


	2. Rumpleteazer

Chapter One- Lies

Chapter Two- Rumpleteazer.

After the calico queen was washed and fed, she was shown to Mungojerrie's quarters by Macavity.

"This is where you'll sleep tonight, thanks to that tom over there," Macavity informed her, pointing at Mungojerrie, who was setting up a second bed in the room.

"Ahem." Macavity cleared his throat. "What are you doing?"

"Wha'?" Mungojerrie exclaimed, spinning around.

"I said, 'What are you doing?', if I remember correctly."

"Oh," the calico tom replied, grinning sheepishly. "Well, I was makin' a second bed, for me, so she could have mine."

Macavity looked at him oddly. "When I say, 'You will share a living quarters', I should think I mean you share the bed as well," Macavity informed him. "But if you prefer living like that," he continued, indicating the poorly made bunk that Mungojerrie had just made; "then I won't stop you."

"Well, thanks, then," Mungojerrie replied as calmly as he could. _Sharing a bunk with a frightened queen? Tha' I don't know, and she don't know me? She is pretty, but I wouldn't do tha'. Not evah,_ he thought silently, taking care not to show how the concept disturbed him.

"Good." Macavity pushed the queen into the room, closed the curtain and chuckled to himself as he walked back to his throne room.

The queen glanced at the closed curtain, then to Mungojerrie.

"Hi there," he said as he held out his hand. She immediately flinched away and stepped back towards the wall. "Wha'?" Mungojerrie took back his hand. "I'm not gonna 'urt you, luv."

She looked at him and moved to sit on the bed that was formerly Mungojerrie's. She slowly sat down and pulled herself under the covers.

"All righ'. I can see tha' you're scared o' me." said Mungojerrie. "So I'll just sit over here in my corner." He moved towards the opposite side of the room.

The queen hit the bed with her paw and shook her head.

"Wha'? You wan' me to stay 'ere?" he asked the silent calico.

She nodded. She then looked about the room, her eyes scanning over everything carefully. Her gaze eventually fell back upon Mungojerrie again. She lifted a paw and pointed to him with an inquisitive look.

"Who am I?" Mungojerrie asked, trying to interoperate the sign.

She nodded again.

"I'm Mungojerrie. Who are you?" he said, trying to sound friendly, pointing to her.

The queen's eyes widened and she threw the covers over herself, and lay down on the bed quivering.

"Oh, I didn't mean to frighten you, I jus' wanted t' know your name," he soothed hastily, trying to keep the calico beauty calm. She shook her head and curled up more under the covers.

"Alright, then," he sighed, leaving her be. "I'll jus' hit the sack now, then."

The queen looked up at him and nodded. She then lay back down and fell asleep rather quickly.

"Maybe I'll get her to talk on the 'morrow," he mumbled under his breath.

……………………………

Several hours passed, and it began to rain. _Joy,_ thought Mungojerrie. _Rain._ _I jus' _love_ the rain._ He soon fell to sleep with the constant pat of rain droplets hitting the brick-and-tin roof above his head.

An hour later, Mungojerrie was awoken by the sound of rolling thunder. He looked about the room for the calico queen, then spotted her curled up on the floor by the larger bed, her eyes wide with fear once again.

"Hi there, luv," he called to her in a soothing voice. She looked over to him and curled up even more.

"Hey," he started, but was drowned out by a lightning bolt quickly followed by a loud crash of thunder. The queen ducked under her blankets at the sound of the thunder, and Mungojerrie flinched away from the skylight when the lightning came.

"By the Everlastin' Cat, I hate lightnin'," grumbled Mungojerrie. A second bolt came down in response, this time closer to the little shack.

"Yipes!" cried Mungojerrie as he jumped to the other side of the room, all his fur standing up on end.

The calico queen giggled. Mungojerrie turned and stared at her in amazement.

"You giggled," he said, shocked.

She smiled and nodded. Suddenly, another rap of thunder shook the small shelter and the queen ducked under the covers. Mungojerrie sighed, went over to his bunk and grabbed up his blanket, then walked back to the queens' side of the room. He curled up about two feet from her and put his blanket over himself.

"I still don' know why I'm afraid o' lightnin'," he moaned.

The queen shook her head and shook her hands in the air. Then she shrugged and looked back to him.

"You aren't sure why you're afraid o' thunder?" Mungojerrie guessed from her signs.

She nodded and scooted towards Mungojerrie. She stopped moving and patted the floor next to her, then signaled for him to move over. He looked at her quizzically, but moved over anyways. She lifted up her covers and pointed to the floor next to her. He again questioned her actions in his mind, but her face was firm and commanding.

"Why?" Mungojerrie asked. She replied by shivering. He nodded and got under the blanket then put his over hers. Her body was like ice, and Mungojerrie flinched as she cuddled up against his warm fur. The queen leaned her head onto his shoulder and put her mouth to his ear.

"Rumpleteazer," she whispered softly.

"Huh?" Mungojerrie looked at her in curiosity. "Wha'd you jus' say?"

But she made no response. He looked down at her face, and it was sincere and quiet. She had fallen asleep upon his shoulder.

"Rumpleteazah," he said quietly to himself. "So tha's your name."


	3. Secret

Brother's Note: Well, I got plenty of nice reviews, so I decided to be nice myself and update

Brother's Note: Well, I got plenty of nice reviews, so I decided to be nice myself and update. Reviews will be replied to, by me, at the bottom.

**Secret**

The next morning, Mungojerrie got up and glanced to Rumpleteazer. She was still sound asleep beneath the two blankets that Mungojerrie once had upon his bed. He smirked and lifted her up under the covers to place her upon the bed once again. When he lifted her, the tom blinked at how light she was. She couldn't be more than six pounds. _Well,_ _at least she isn't ice cold anymore_, he thought.

He placed her on the bed and made sure the covers were over her before he headed out of the shack and back into the catacombs of Macavity's lair.

He bumped into Tamerang before he even made it through the door.

"Oh, sorry," apologized Tamerang. "I didn't realize that you were up."

"No, no, tha's okay," the younger tom hastily replied. "I'm usually not up 'till around ten any ways," he added with a yawn and a stretch.

The two exited the room, hoping not to wake up Rumpleteazer.

"How many thieves does Macavity 'ave anyways?" inquired Mungojerrie, once outside of his quarters.

"Most of them came in last night. You might be able to meet some of them. There are only maybe a half-a-dozen thieves, not counting you two, but she needs to learn to steal. _Before_ Macavity sends you two on an assignment," Tamerang told Mungojerrie.

"Righ'." said Mungojerrie. "Has she already tried to steal something?"

Tamerang nodded. "She tried to take some pearls from Macavity while he was sleeping, but he caught her before she even laid a paw on them."

"Uh-hu," mused Mungojerrie. "So, who would be able to teach her to steal correctly?"

"Fencer."

Mungojerrie blinked twice. "Fencer?" he asked smirking. "What kind of name is tha'?"

"My brother's name," responded Tamerang defensively.

Mungojerrie stopped smirking. "Oh. Sorry."

"I take no offense," said Tamerang. "It's my brother who'll kill you if you say that within earshot of him."

"Thanks for the warning. I'll keep it in mind." Mungojerrie started to commit it to memory.

Suddenly, Rumpleteazer appeared at Mungojerrie's side. She smiled at him, then walked over to Tamerang and gave him a hug.

"Thanks," she said to him quietly. The queen then made her way down the hall.

Tamerang simply stood there, looking as though a bomb had dropped.

"Wha' is it?" asked Mungojerrie.

"She just said thanks to me," Tamerang told him, still in shock.

"Wha'? She doesn't say much to you?"

"The _only_ things she has ever said to me have been 'Do you have any food?' and now, 'Thanks'," Tamerang replied, dumfounded. "Did you give her happy pills or some such?"

"No!" the young tom replied defensively. "All I did to her was cuddle with her because she told me to." Tamerang stared at him as though he were joking. "Well she didn't really tell me, she more sort of signaled it to me. Honest."

"All right, I believe you," Tamerang replied, giving him a skeptical twitch of his ears.

"_Honest_!"

Tamerang laughed, then glanced down the hallway in the direction that the queen just went down, but found no trace of her.

"Umm, where'd little miss calico queen go?" asked Tamerang, sounding nervous quite suddenly.

Mungojerrie looked down the same direction. "Uhm, perhaps to breakfast or something?" he suggested.

"Macavity is probably in there," stated Tamerang. "And, knowing former captives myself, they all want a chance to kill him."

Mungojerrie glanced at Tamerang for half a second, then raced down the hallway.

_If Macavity even touches her, Napoleon of Crime or no, I swear I'll strangle him,_ the calico tom thought frantically.

Mungojerrie turned the corner to the Main Hall. He looked to Macavity's chair and saw Rumpleteazer's paws hanging over the arms of it, but Macavity was nowhere to be seen. _Probably behind the chair!_ he thought, mind racing with horrible thoughts of what Macavity would do to her.

"Macavity!" Mungojerrie roared as he launched himself towards the chair, catapulting himself over the table. The chair swung around as he flew towards it.

There was Rumpleteazer, playing with some of the Hidden paw's pearls, and Macavity nowhere in sight.

"Whoa-no!" Mungojerrie screamed as he hit the side of the chair, toppling it, and Rumpleteazer along with him.

Tamerang rounded the corner just in time to see Mungojerrie topple the chair and see only Rumpleteazer in it. He let out a laugh of relief when he saw Mungojerrie lying on his back, and Rumpleteazer over in a corner, cowering from the flying calico tom.

"_What in the name of the Everlasting Cat is causing such a ruckus out here?" _screeched Hera as she stormed into the hall. She saw Tamerang laughing hysterically, Rumpleteazer giggling in a corner, and Mungojerrie holding his head by Macavity's throne. "What just happened?" she demanded from Tamerang.

"Well," Tamerang began, trying to keep a somewhat straight face. "Mungojerrie panicked and attacked the chair, upon which our dear little calico queen was sitting on, and hit his head!" After finishing explaining things, he immediately burst into laughter once again, almost falling over onto the table.

"Hey!" Mungojerrie shouted. "I did _not_ panic, I jus'… umm…" He stalled, looking for an appropriate word.

"Panicked?" suggested Hera.

Mungojerrie sighed. "I guess I did." He shot a quick glare at Tamerang, which set the older cat into another fit of hysteria.

"All right, settle down," Hera said, trying not to chuckle herself. "Breakfast is almost ready. So clean this place up," she commanded. "I want no more toppled chairs for the rest of the morning." She nodded firmly and walked back into the kitchen, where Mungojerrie heard laughter erupt from.

"Jeez," he whined, rubbing the spot where he had hit his head. "I do somethin' stupid, and the entire place goes t' a fun house."

"Hey, it's not as bad as my first day." said Tamerang as he reset the throne and lifted Mungojerrie off the floor.

"Wha' happened your firs' day?" asked Mungojerrie, not believing that anything could be much worse than what he had just done.

"Oh, I was, umm, sorta picking on the little ratlings," he explained, ears twitching. "And then the big ones came and beat the snot out of me."

Mungojerrie looked quite amused. "_Really?_ Your _snot_?" He then broke out laughing, causing Tamerang to _accidentally_ drop him back onto the floor.

Rumpleteazer giggled again, then slid over to the chair and plopped herself back into it, taking up the pearls again to play with them some more.

"What is it with you and pearls, kitten?" inquired Hera as she walked back out with a platter of eggs and bacon. She placed the eggs on the table and gave the one with bacon to Tamerang. "Give those to the prisoners," she ordered. "I am quite sure that they are hungry."

"Yes ma'am," he replied happily and bounded into the cell corridor with the bacon.

Mungojerrie took a seat, then glanced to the other hallways. "Say," he began, "isn' anyone else gon-"

"Yes," Hera cut him off. "More cats will come for breakfast. In fact …" She stared into a darkened hallway. "Here comes Fencer now."

Mungojerrie stared into the same darkened hallway that Hera was looking down. There was no sign of movement at all, from what his eyes could tell.

"So, who's the newcomer Hera?" came a low voice from behind Mungojerrie.

Mungojerrie turned about quickly, and saw a very tall tom, his fur covered in soot, hovering over him.

"Aaak!" he shrieked, falling out of his chair.

Rumpleteazer giggled at him and waved at the charcoal-covered tom.

"Aaahh." the tom breathed as he walked over to her. "I see the little queen finally got Macavity to get someone out of her cell," he purred as he rubbed her head with his paw.

She nodded and pointed to Mungojerrie.

"So you got her out 'eh?" the tom asked, glancing at the other calico.

"Uhh, yeah," replied Mungojerrie quietly.

He nodded and offered his paw to the calico. "Fencer," he said, by way of introduction.

"I'm Mungojerrie," the nervous tom replied. He held out his hand to Fencer and shook it. Fencer then lifted him to his feet and offered him a chair.

"Have a seat," he said while indicating to all the empty chairs.

Mungojerrie took a seat right by the eggs, and stared hungrily at them.

"Hera! Your lover is coming!" Fencer shouted dramatically as he walked down the hallway.

Hera yelled back at Fencer, "My lover had better be cleaned up before he walks into _my_ kitchen!"

Fencer turned around immediately and walked back into the hallway, "Queens." he sighed before he entered another corridor.

Hera chuckled as she brought out more eggs and sausage. "Toms," she said just loud enough for Fencer to hear.

Mungojerrie glanced over to Rumpleteazer. She was playing with a nice strand of pearls, and trying to look occupied while waiting for the food to be served

"Hey," called a voice, softly. Tamerang came past her on his way to the kitchen with an empty plate upon which the bacon had formerly lain. "Do you feel like telling us your name now?"

Rumpleteazer looked at him and shook her head. She giggled and played with his head fur as he passed.

Fencer reappeared from the hallway, suddenly clean, revealing his real colours, white with jagged black stripes. He sauntered back into the kitchen searching for Hera. She walked out with him, his paws resting softly on her hips, and licking her ears clean.

Mungojerrie quickly glanced away, hoping neither of them would notice that his face went a soft red.

"Hey, Fencer," Tamerang spoke up, emerging from the kitchen. "Mungojerrie wanted to know if you could give some pointers on thievery to him and the queen."

"Hey now," Mungojerrie said, all the redness escaping from his face. "I asked if he could give Rumpl-!"

Rumpleteazer quickly sprang out of her chair and slapped her paw over his mouth. She glared at him fiercely and shook her head.

"I'm sorry, I didn't hear you," Fencer said, being distracted by Hera. "What were you just saying?"

"I was saying," Mungojerrie began cautiously, Rumpleteazer glaring at him all the while, "that I asked if our calico queen could get some pointers on thievery."

"Okay," replied Fencer. "But I think you could do with some pointers as well. Your form was very sloppy the day you robbed the Wellington Mansion."

"Wha'?" asked the calico tom in disbelief. "How'd you know about me doing tha'?"

"I was sent to track you down," Fencer replied simply, "then report back to Macavity of your exploits for the past month and a half."

Mungojerrie was dumfounded. "Why?" he asked in a high pitched voice.

"Because," Fencer said as he left Hera and sat down across the table from where Tamerang was sitting. "You are the only cat in London who had some prospects of _decent_ thievery, besides the young queen here." He pointed over to Rumpleteazer, who was still immersed in her pearls.

"Uh-huh," the younger tom managed, one of his ears twitching as the striped tom told him this.

Rumpleteazer grinned and tossed a bead at Mungojerrie.

"Hey!" exclaimed the poor tom. "Don't be throwin' stuff at your newly appointed partner in crime now!"

She ginned and grabbed some food that Hera had just placed on the table. Mungojerrie watched her as she carefully picked at the egg on her plate. He thought for a moment, _Why was_ _I so concerned about her in the firs' place? She's fine, and I overreacted 'cause o' a stranger? And why does she want to keep her name a secret? What's _wrong _with me? _

_**OMGitsASH:**__ Kudos, cookies, and other assorted baked goods for you for being my first reviewer ever! Thanks for the review, it was nice. There's no such thing as too much Mungojerrie/Rumpleteazer! _

**Krissy4:** Thanks for the nice review and, yes, I love Mungojerrie/Rumpleteazer, and I promise to continue writing it.

**Sailor Star Rozen:** Here you go, new chapter, all fresh and shiny-new!

**Summ:** I'm glad you think I'm doing a great job! This is my first fanfic, so I'm happy. **((smiles))**

**Eminems6:** Macavity's just _fun_ to write about - he's psycho, but in a cool, scary way. Here's an update for you!

**Bianca Mephisto:** Yes, to a stranger, it may seem odd ... but stranger's don't often come here, and this is my first fic ever ... so. But thanks for saying you think I'm doing okay so far!

Remember - review, AND GOODNESS WILL BE YOURS.


	4. Partners in Crime

Chapter One- Lies

Chapter Four- Partners in Crime.

Mungojerrie decided that he was too tired to be bothered with learning at that particular part of the day, and decided to take a quick cat-nap. After about two hours of blissful sleep, he slowly woke up…

…to a pair of light blue eyes staring into his own, rather close to his face.

"EEYIE!" he cried as Rumpleteazer bounced from the head of his bed to the mattress that belonged to her.

She signaled him to follow her and raced out of the shack, into the long corridors of Macavity's lair.

_What does she want now?_ he thought furiously after he lifted himself off his bunk.

He walked out of the shack, heading towards the Throne room. He saw Rumpleteazer waiting impatiently as he rounded the corner. She beckoned again and bolted into another hallway.

"Oi," moaned the tom. He continued to follow her until she stopped in the thieves lounge. Mungojerrie saw that Macavity liked to keep his thieves happy too, for the room was adorned with almost the same amount of ornaments as his throne

"Ahhh, _there_ you are, Mungojerrie." Fencer appeared out of his room, settling his fur, which looked like he had just been in bed. With someone else.

"Close the curtain, would you dearie?" emerged a muffled voice that Mungojerrie dimly recognized as Hera's.

Fencer closed the sheet over the entrance to his quarters, then turned back to the two calicos. "Well," he began. "Why don't we go outside? It's much easier to practice stealing out there."

He began walking out of the lounge, towards a tunnel that Mungojerrie hadn't noticed before. Rumpleteazer followed Fencer into the tunnel. _Ahh well,_ thought Mungojerrie. _I'd migh' as well follow them._

"Hey, Jerrie, you coming?" called Fencer from the darkness ahead.

"Yes, I'm coming," came the tired response of the calico tom. "And it's _Mungo_jerrie, not 'Jerrie'."

A loud chuckle echoed through the hall, one that could only belong to Macavity. Mungojerrie immediately started to run down the darkened corridor, for it sounded like it came from in front of him. _Oh Everlastin' Cat, Rumpleteazer, don't do anything stupid!_ his mind desperately cried.

He emerged from the tunnel into an alleyway, illuminated with light. Macavity was standing before Fencer, and Rumpleteazer was crouched behind the black striped tom. She obviously was not pleased to see the self-proclaimed Napoleon of Crime, but neither was Fencer, for that matter.

"Hello, my thieves," said the tall ginger cat. "And where would we be off to?"

"I was going to teach them a few of my tricks," stated Fencer, with a hint of hatred in his suddenly monotone voice.

"Oh, _good_." Macavity smiled, a truly disturbing sight. "But there's no time for that right now. You can teach them everything you need to while you three are on a job for me."

"Oh?" questioned Fencer, lashing his tail in annoyance. "And what job do I have the honour of sharing with these two greens?"

Mungojerrie wanted to remind him that he _had_ gone stealing before, and therefore wasn't anywhere near green, but thought better of it and kept his mouth shut.

"I need you to seek out someone for me," Macavity informed them. "There is a kitten living in the Jellicle junkyard, on the east side of London. I need you to follow her and, eventually, when no one can see you, bring her to me."

"Yes, and _who_, pray tell, would this kitten be?" inquired Fencer, biting back his annoyance with practiced ease.

"A kitten, whose name is … Jemima."

Rumpleteazer's ears twitched as Macavity said the kitten's name. She hissed angrily at him, her claws unsheathing. Mungojerrie hurriedly grabbed her by the shoulders and held her behind Fencer.

There was a long silence between the black striped tom and the ginger cat. Finally, Macavity spoke up. "You will leave _now,_ Fencer. Teach them," he commanded, indicating the tense calicos, "along the way."

"Fine," stated Fencer flatly. He began to walk away, towards the mouth of alley.

"C'mon, Teazah. Let's follow Fencer to wherever we're s'posed t' go," Mungojerrie whispered, quietly enough so only Rumpleteazer could catch it.

The two caught up with Fencer, and, after a moment of strained silence, the calico tom asked him, "Where'd tha' tone o' voice appear from?"

Fencer sat down against the brick wall with a weary sigh. "You see, I hate catnapping. I don't mind stealing, but I just hate catnapping," he explained, to Mungojerrie's surprise. "But, I'm the best raider that Macavity has, besides himself." He sighed. "The bastard loves to make me feel uncomfortable. And now, this!" The scruffy tom looked to the ground, ears flat. "Napping an innocent kit? What in the name of the Everlasting Cat would he want to do that for? What does he have against, what was it, 'Jemima'?"

"Maybe it's something t' do with her parents," suggested Mungojerrie.

"Well, whatever it is," the older tom said, ears drooping. "I don't think I really want to know." The younger calicos looked at him curiously. Fencer sighed again and reasoned, "When you discover the situation of a certain cat, you have a choice – either you continue with your mission, or you do the right thing and return the object, or kit, back to the rightful owners, and get punished by Macavity." His face spelt doom when he mentioned the punishing.

Mungojerrie understood what Fencer meant. If they did the right thing, they would pay horribly, but if they did the wrong thing, they'd live to regret it for the rest of their days, which was why it was better to just not know.

"Let's go." Fencer finally muttered after a moment.

He led the two younger calicos to a fountain by a park. He looked into it and saw a rather muddy image of himself. He turned back to his two partners in crime.

"To the job." he declared, and began lapping up some water.

"Aye." replied Mungojerrie, solemnly, and did the same.

Rumpleteazer just stood next to the toms and watched them drink. Mungojerrie lifted his head and looked to her. She held her arm as if something was wrong. He turned her towards him, then reassured her with a few comforting words. _Why is she so worried?_ he thought, concerned. _ Everything will turn out to be all right._


	5. Jemima

A/N - Sorry if I took a while on the updating, wouldn't let me for a few days

A/N - Sorry if I took a while on the updating, wouldn't let me for a few days. But anywho... this is amongst my favorite chapters I've written so far. I hope you enjoy it too. Review replies will be found on the bottom of the page. R&R please.

Jemima.

Jemima was out playing with Victoria and Etcetera. It was a Tuesday, and that meant they were playing hide-and-go-seek for the morning. But it just didn't seem the same without Skimbleshanks' calico daughter.

Munkustrap looked on to his daughter, Jemima, and her friends with that 'fatherly love' kind of look. Demeter, his mate, walked up to his side.

"How are they doing?" she asked the silver tabby.

He turned to the gold-and-black queen and breathed in deeply. "I keep on thinking that we should tell her," he sighed. "But I can't bring myself to do it. There's just …"

"A little voice inside saying no?" finished Demeter.

Munkustrap solemnly nodded his head. He then turned his gaze back to his daughter and her friends playing. "She doesn't even suspect it, either. What resemblance to me does she have at all?"

"As long that she thinks she does, she will."

Munkustrap looked to his mate, quizzically.

"Her heart is just like yours and mine," explained Demeter. "A little brave, but a little cautious too."

"I know," whispered Munkustrap lovingly to his mate. He put his arm around her shoulders. "Has Alonzo found anything out about Skimble's daughter?"

She turned to him, visibly upset. "Oh, Munkustrap … we think Macavity has her."

"All right, we're almost to the junkyard. Keep low, and follow my lead," ordered Fencer. Mungojerrie nodded, but Rumpleteazer stayed in the alleyway that the three had taken refuge in during the night.

Mungojerrie glanced behind his back. "Oh, c'mon, luv. All we 'ave t' do is get in, grab Jemimur or whoever, an' get out."

Rumpleteazer shook her head and pointed to the ground.

Fencer turned around and slunk back to the tom and queen. "Listen, we don't have time for this!" he scolded quietly, eyes narrowed.

"She doesn't wan' t' go," explained Mungojerrie.

"All right," whispered the elder tom in exasperation. "You don't move," he ordered Rumpleteazer, pointing a claw at her. "You got that?"

Rumpleteazer looked as if she was about to cry, but nodded and held back her tears. She motioned for them to go, while sitting down on the corner of the alley. Mungojerrie looked back at her, concerned, before vanishing into piles of junk.

"I hope she'll be all righ'," mumbled the calico tom.

"She'll be just fine, as long as she isn't spotted," assured Fencer, more to himself than to Mungojerrie.

The toms made their way through the junkyard without spotting any Jellicles.

"Funny," Fencer thought aloud. "There's usually a guard or two out here." He twitched his tail in confusion. "Where is everyone?"

Mungojerrie shrugged. "Could be tha' there was a party or something last nigh'."

"Doubtful, but not impossible." agreed Fencer, as he peered around a corner of scrap metal. "Oh no, not good."

"Wha'?" asked Mungojerrie, trying to see what Fencer was so worried about.

Fencer shoved him back behind the scrap metal 'wall'. "Munkustrap," he whispered.

"Monk-us-trapped?" Mungojerrie put his ears forward, out of curiosity.

Fencer shook his head, but did not look at the young tom. "Munkustrap," he repeated, slower this time. "He's the guardian of this little tribe. And it looks like he has himself a mate."

"Wha' does him havin' a mate have anything to do with our plan?" questioned Mungojerrie.

Fencer sighed. "It means, we now have a distraction. Here's what we'll do …"

Demeter finally left her mate after several minutes of talking with him about Skimbleshank's daughter, and how the search was going. She was very dearly concerned about the poor little queen. She was only eleven months old, and then Macavity goes off and steals her away from all she loved. "Why would he do it in the first place?" she asked herself quietly. Suddenly, she was dragged by the head, with her eyes and her mouth covered by strong paws, and pulled into a crevasse of junk. She unsheathed her claws and dug them into her attacker's legs. He grunted in pain, but held in his yelp and one of his claws nicked her throat, convincing her to stop struggling. A second pair of paws took her ankles and tied them together, then took her wrists and tied them up behind her back. She was then laid upon the ground gently.

A tom's voice came to her, firm but soft. "Scream and you won't be harmed," said the voice.

She shook her head. Why would he _want_ her to scream? Didn't he want a quiet escape, like criminals usually do?

"Fine. Have it _your_ way," the voice said, this time as if he was angry at something. The tom lifted his paws off her face and turned her head towards the pile of junk that was hovering above her. "Pull it," the voice ordered another.

She saw a rope go taught, and the junk started to fall towards her. She didn't want to scream, but her instincts washed over her nervous body and she shrieked as it came down onto her.

Munkustrap heard the crash of the junk pile, then his mate's frantic cry, both coming from a crevasse not far from him. "_Dear Everlasting_!" he exclaimed as he rounded the corner and saw the mountain of junk, possibly on top of his mate.

"DEMETER!" Munkustrap cried as he started searching through the junk frantically. "Demeter! Where are you?"

He spotted a gold and black paw sticking out from the rubble, under a piece of sheet metal. "Demeter!" he shouted as he tried to lift the heavy object.

"What's going on Munkustrap?" asked a voice from behind him. It was Rum Tum Tugger, one of Munkustrap's good friends.

"This pile fell on Demeter!" he grunted as he continued trying to lift the sheet.

Tugger immediately ran over and began assisting Munkustrap in lifting the heavy piece of metal. Munkustrap took a metal pole from nearby and propped up his end as he lifted the sheet.

"Demeter!" His tail fell as he saw her limp body, and crawled under the piece of junk to pull his mate out.

Demeter opened her eyes as Munkustrap gently carried her out of her steely prison. "There were two of them," she gasped as she tried to explain things to her mate. "I didn't know what to do an-"

"Shhhh." hushed Munkustrap as he began untying the ropes. "Tell me later. Right now I need to get you to Jelly and Jenny."

"AAAAAAHHH!" came a cry from over where the kittens were playing.

Munkustrap and Tugger both looked over towards the direction of the youngsters in horror.

"That was Jemima," exclaimed Tugger as he vaulted himself over to another wreckage pile overlooking the kitten's usual play-place.

He spotted Victoria and Etcetera leaping away quickly to where Munkustrap was supposed to be. Their faces had a look of concern, and a 'just scared the hell out of' look written all over.

Tugger raced over the junk to intercept them. "What happened to Jemima?" he demanded.

Etcetera glanced over to him, but kept running to Munkustrap. Tugger caught her by her paw and swung her around to face him.

"_What happened to Jemima!_" he repeated, urgency sweeping through his voice.

"Some mean black and white striped tom came and took her away!" she wailed, crying at the loss of her friend.

Tugger's heart skipped a beat. "Go to Munkustrap," he ordered in a harsh tone and took off in the direction of where Jemima was last. He sniffed at the air and took a quick glance to where any tracks of larger cats may be. He spotted a trail that looked recent, and bolted after it.

"Jemima!" he yelled, hoping to get a cry back. None came.

"Damn it!" he growled and raced to the entrance to the Jellicle junkyard. He searched for anything that might indicate where the kitten-nappers were. There was no evidence that anyone had been there since last night, when the Jellicles were announcing the fixes for that year's Jellicle ball. "Damn it all!" he shouted, then took off, back to where Munkustrap and the queens were.

"Well," growled Fencer. "That was good."

Mungojerrie glanced at the tom, whose face was covered in disgust in himself. The little queen squirmed in the calico's arms, but he held a firm grip on her.

"Would you keep her calm!" hissed the black striped tom, ears flattened at the blindfolded and roped kitten.

Mungojerrie nodded and turned his head towards her. "Hey there, luv," he whispered softly. She struggled to get free of his arms, but to no avail. "Hey, I'm not gonna 'urt you, I swear on me life."

She stopped struggling so much when Mungojerrie spoke to her, but he could tell that she was still frightened.

Fencer's ears suddenly perked up and he glanced around quickly. "We need to get somewhere hidden. Now," he whispered in a practiced fake calm.

"Why?" questioned Mungojerrie, still trying to comfort the little kitten.

"They're coming," Fencer said pointing to the other side of the street, before sprinting down and gathering up Rumpleteazer from the alley she was sitting in.

Mungojerrie looked to the left side of the street and saw four Pollicles looking for a meal. He brought the young queen kitten quickly down to Fencer. The black and white cat took her from the younger tom's arms and placed her paws over his head, and placed her onto his back gently.

"You won't get hurt as long as you hang on," Fencer whispered into Jemima's ear. She nodded and he blazed down the alleyway at an un-catlike speed. Rumpleteazer ran after him as quick as she could, which was surprisingly fast. Mungojerrie took one last glance around to be sure that they hadn't been spotted.

_Dear Everlastin' Cat, _the nervous tom prayed to himself. _Please forgive me an' Fencer for doin' this. We're jus' followin' orders so we don' meet you prematurely._ That last part put a smug smile on the calico's face. He shot a glance over his shoulder to be sure that they weren't being followed one last time.

He stumbled right into Rumpleteazer, who had suddenly stopped when Fencer started climbing the brick wall of an alleyway building, and knocked her to the ground.

"Whoa!" the tom yelped as he rolled off her back, with the momentum still carried from the run pulling him along, into a puddle.

Rumpleteazer smirked at him and leapt onto the wall herself. Mungojerrie stared up the wall and drooped his tail, which was now soaked. _Wha'd I do t' deserve this?_

He then clawed himself onto a gutter and pulled himself up to the roof, where Fencer was helping Rumpleteazer up off the bricks, and the kitten lay against the rail, apparently unconscious.

"Wha' happened t' her?" asked Mungojerrie, concerned with the kitten's well being.

"Her blindfold fell off her face while I was climbing. She must have looked down and fainted," answered Fencer, checking her chest for a pulse. "Yeah. She's out for now. Her heart is moving a mile a minute, though."

"Wha'll happen t' Jemima?" inquired Rumpleteazer quietly.

"I don't know wha-" Fencer moved to face the calico queen. "You just spoke to me."

"Yeah?" she replied impatiently, louder this time. "And so wha' if I did? Now,_ wha' will Macavity do t' her when we get back?_"

Mungojerrie did a double-take. _Wow,_ he thought, grinning slightly. _She has the mos' beautiful cockney accent I've evah heard. Besides me own, o' course._

Rumpleteazer looked to him in absurdity. "An' wha' are you droolin' for?" she demanded. Mungojerrie's face quickly turned to a deep scarlet, then quickly wiped the drool off his chin and sat down upon the railing of the roof.

"I, in all honesty, have no idea what Macavity has in store for her," Fencer replied, to Rumpleteazer's first question. He then frowned and looked up at her. "Hey, how'd you know this one was Jemima anyways?"

"You did," Rumpleteazer replied, turning away from Fencer, obviously hiding _something_.

"I took the nearest kitten I saw and hoped for the best," Fencer said peevishly.

Rumpleteazer did not respond to his answer. Instead, she walked over to Jemima and put her arms around the kitten's shoulders. "Buggoff," she mumbled as she shooed Fencer towards Mungojerrie.

Fencer looked to her, then to Mungojerrie and shrugged. "I don't know where that came from," he admitted, as he limped over to the younger tom's side. "But I tell you, there's something about her that makes you…"

"Fall in love with her?" suggested Mungojerrie

"…Not _exactly_, but more like, 'return them to their families and get killed by Macavity so they can be happy' kind of feeling," he said quickly.

"You're talking abou' who here? The two of them?" Mungojerrie asked him, protective of the queens for some reason

"The two of them," Fencer agreed. His face turned a shade of light pink, and he grinned. "You got to tell the truth in this line of work _sometimes_."

Mungojerrie's thoughts were rapidly turning into something he had never thought about before, something _unfamiliar _to him. He shook his head violently. _No, you aren't even thinking of it! Evah again! _his mind shouted at himself._ Why am I falling for someone I haven't even known for two days?_ _Why am I falling in love with Rumpleteazer?_

**Krissy4**- I'm being kind again! Two more chapters for you and the others. Hope you like them! Oh, and by the way, you think a lot. Good guessing!

**Rumpleteazer02 **_- _Here are two more chapters for your enjoyment. But, who says they'll stop them?

**Ranoko**_** -**_ Again, I give more to everyone. Lordy, I _like_ being nice. Here, Hands everyone kudos and cookies have some. Enjoy!

**OMGitsASH**- Well, your welcome for the cookies, and, if you didn't notice, I gave everyone more. And yes, he dosn't like being surprised _often_...

**Eminems6**- Yes, I think Rumpleteazer is _very_ cute, (no matter what the story), and yes, just like Krissy4, you are also, a _very_ good guesser. Here's the next two Chapters, all for you, (and you, and you, and you, and... for all of you over there...and you... oh, I can't forget about you...)

**FFD**- Here you go, here you go, here you go!! More, more and more!!

**Just someone**- Well, if you liked it, you shall like this! More for everyone!!


	6. Out of Loss

Chapter One- Lies

Chapter Six- Out of Loss.

"Damn, that really hurt!" Fencer grumbled about his wound on his leg, graciously given by Demeter's paw. He wrapped it up with a sheet from a clothesline hanging from a human's apartment.

"Why wasn' it bothering you before?" asked Mungojerrie, smirking at how the older tom was griping about his leg.

"Adrenaline rush," Fencer answered quickly, as if he were expecting the question.

Rumpleteazer giggled, trying to hide her face from his steely gaze.

"Be quiet," he hissed sharply, face going slightly pink for the _second_ time that day.

She began to laugh, but quickly hushed herself as Jemima groaned. The calico queen tightened the blindfold as the kitten slowly came to consciousness.

"Huuuu…" Jemima moaned as she returned to the land of the living. "Rumpleteazer, was that you laughing?"

………………………………

Munkustrap paced in front of Jellylorum's box, waiting to hear anything about the condition of his mate. Jellylorum demanded that the silver tabby was to stay outside until she assessed Demeter's well-being.

Jennyanydots eventually scuttled out from the doorway, a sad look on her face.

"Jenny, how is she?" asked Munkustrap, desperate to hear of his mates condition.

"She has a broken paw and a dislocated shoulder, but she will come out of it," Jennyanydots reported.

Munkustrap nodded and embraced the elderly queen in a long hug, wanting to make her feel happy before he told her the horrible news.

"Jenny," Munkustrap began, stomach in knots. "They took Jemima."

Jennyanydots pushed away from Munkustrap, with tears suddenly welling up in her eyes. "Who took her?" she insisted.

"Agents of Macavity," Munkustrap said solemnly, trying as best he could to hold back his own tears.

"A-are you s-s-sure?" Jenny asked, her voice wavering with every moment.

"Yes." the silver tom replied, making a nearly visible effort to keep from breaking down as well. _Not now, Munkustrap. Not in front of Jenny._ _Then it _will_ be hopeless._ "Etcetera managed to describe one of the agents to me. I think it was Fencer."

Jenny started to wail into Munkustrap's furry chest. "No! N-not h-h-him!" she looked up to his eyes. "The s-s-same one w-who…?"

"Yes, the same one… the same one who killed Victor." Munkustrap finished her sentence, remembering the day when the black and white tom killed his older brother, the day he, Munkustrap,became tribe guardian. The day when Alonzo, _his _younger brother, became the second in command. _The day he met Demeter._

A trickle of tears finally fell down Munkustrap's face. "I will go and find her. And I will find your daughter too. I will bring them back home, where they belong. I _promise._"

Jenny nodded shakily and went back to Jellylorum's box, sniffling. Munkustrap quietly whispered "I love you, Demeter," to the entrance of the box, and trudged off to find Rum Tum Tugger. He'd know where Mistoffelees, the Original Conjuring Cat, was. Or he'd better, at least, for he had no time to seek the magician out. He was going to find Jemima and Rumpleteazer. He_ was_.

……………………………

Fencer stared at the kitten for several moments. "What did you just say?" he asked Jemima in a soft voice.

"I asked if Rumpleteazer was laughing," the kitten repeated, voice quivering. "But … she couldn't have been, since she's been missing for a month and a half now."

Rumpleteazer looked away and ran to the other side of the roof. Mungojerrie made an attempt to stop her, but she pushed him away.

The calico tom stared at her for a moment, then followed her to her side of the building. "Wha's wrong, Teazah?" he asked, trying to put his arm around her shoulder.

She pushed his arm away, then sighed. "Macavity stole me away from them," she whispered quietly, pointing to Jemima. She turned away as a trail of tears trickled down her cheek.

"Oh, shhh," comforted Mungojerrie, placing his paw on her shoulder. "You'll get back soon. I'm sure."

Rumpleteazer turned to face him. "N-no, I'm not." She buried her head in his chest, and began to let loose her tears. "I'll nevah get back. Not with Macavity watching me."

Mungojerrie couldn't come up with a response to that statement. He knew she was right. If Macavity took her, then he wouldn't give her up. He slowly put his arms around her and rubbed her back. "You'll be fine," he reassured her.

Fencer slowly walked up to the pair of calicos. "Are you Rumpleteazer?" he demanded, with harsh-sounding words.

Rumpleteazer just let out a cry and buried her head further into Mungojerrie.

"I'll take that as a yes," he muttered, and stalked back over to where Jemima was sitting, then leaned forwards and peered over the railing of the roof.

"Oh no," he gasped suddenly, jerking his head back.

"Wha'?" queried Mungojerrie, walking over to Fencer with Rumpleteazer at his side.

"He found us."

………………………………

Munkustrap sprinted down the alleyway. _Where did they go?_ he thought frantically. Mistoffelees said that they went this way. And the magician never guessed on his abilities. He was either completely sure, or never revealed a message until he was.

Munkustrap groaned, seeing the alley was a dead end. _Where could the son of a Pollicle have gone?_ He looked upwards in despair and saw a face looking down at him from the roof.

It was the bastard who killed his brother, and now had cat-napped his daughter – Fencer.

Munkustrap hissed at him and dug his claws into the brick wall. He knew that it would be hard, and he probably should have waited for Tugger, but all normal thoughts had passed him by then. Now, he wanted his daughter back. And he _would_ get her, or die trying.

…………………………

Fencer turned hurriedly and lifted Jemima from the ground and clasped his paw around her throat.

"Ahhh!" the panicked kitten shrieked as he squeezed harder.

"_Wha' in hells name are you doing t' her_?" roared Mungojerrie, eyes wide from Fencer's sudden and alarming move. He moved to take Jemima away from the older tom, but was stopped by a claw nearing his throat.

Fencer waited until the young queen was completely limp. "All right, she's unconscious now," he informed the angered calico tom in short, clipped tones. "She'll be easier to carry for you. Now get out of here!"

"Wha's going on?" the younger tom demanded, still angry.

"Munkustrap is coming up the wall," Fencer snapped at him. "I'll hold him off; meanwhiles, you two get her to the lair." Fencer then thrust Jemima onto Mungojerrie's back and motioned for him to go.

Mungojerrie reluctantly nodded. "Let's go Teazah," he said as he took her paw. She waved a hand at Fencer, then started climbing down the wall to another alley. Mungojerrie shot one last, suspicious glance at Fencer before climbing down the wall himself.

Fencer hissed crossly and turned to face the east railing, where Munkustrap had just clambered over the wall.

"Hello." Fencer bowed to the Jellicle guardian and grinned, mockingly. "I'm sure you know who I am, and I know who you are. So let's skip formalities and get to the questions. Or the fighting. I personally don't care for either one, but one of them will happen."

"Where's Jemima?" Munkustrap snarled at his brother's killer.

"She will be fine, as long as you don't follow me," replied Fencer, frowning at the silver tabby. "Why haven't you attacked me yet? I can see that you hate me, the cat who murdered your brother, and now has taken one of your precious kittens."

Munkustrap's ears went flat against his head, and, yowling fiercely, leapt at the cocky tom. Fencer suddenly rolled to the right as the silver cat hurtled by, barely missing him. The tabby rapidly swung his paw out at the black striped tom, as he skidded into the roof. The blow narrowly nicked the older tom, giving him another scratch on his leg. Fencer immediately launched himself at the guardian and tackled him, shoving the tabby's face into the ground.

"Yeeearrggh!" Munkustrap roared as he turned over to strike at the elder's chest. He felt his claws latch onto a fleshy torso and dig in deep. A resulting _fwap!_ hit the younger tom's temple. The tabby winced as pain seared through his head, then a second blow quickly hit him in the upper neck. Munkustrap struggled to stay conscious, but a third blow knocked him out cold.

_Damn it, NO!_ he thought as he slipped into darkness.


	7. With Rage

Chapter One- Lies

Chapter Seven- With Rage.

Mungojerrie made it all the way down the side of the building, then glanced over at Rumpleteazer. She was staring at the limp body on his back with obvious concern.

"Here," Mungojerrie said as he took her off his back and cradled her between his arms. "Is tha' betta?"

Rumpleteazer nodded, but still looked at the kitten worriedly.

"Don' worry abou' her, Teazah," the tom tried to reassure his partner. "She'll be fine."

_I hope._ he added silently to himself. _Fencer did fairly strangle her, after all._

Rumpleteazer took the lead and led Mungojerrie through several back-alleys and streets, to avoid detection from anything, or anyone. What she didn't know, is that someone_ was_ watching them, not closely, but close enough. A certain cat whose name was Cassandra.

……………………………

The Burmese Jellicle queen yawned. It had been a _very _long night, with all her humans partying at her house for the entirety of the moonlit hours. She couldn't get to sleep until maybe four in the morning.

Cassandra stretched out her lean body in her human's 'back-yard'. It was more like an alley than anything else. What she wouldn't do for a _real _backyard lawn…

Suddenly, an orange-coated cat caught her eye. Scratch that, _two _calicos caught her eye. A queen and a tom. And the tom was carrying a third cat in his paws.

She shrugged and carried on with her stretching, when she remembered what Alonzo had said to her one night. _"Rumpleteazer has been cat-napped! That's the reason I'm always out. My brother will stop at nothing to find her, and neither will I."_

She took another glance at the pair of calicos. Yes, it was Rumpleteazer! She sat up, startled. But where was she going? Cassandra contemplated going to the Jellicle junkyard for half a moment, then shook her head. _No. By the time I get there, Teazer will be long gone._

The sleek queen took off after Rumpleteazer and the other calico. _Wait a moment, that's the way to Macavity's lair! What in the name of the Everlasting Cat would possess her to go there?_ Cassandra thought in surprise as she raced along.

"Rumpleteazer!" she called as she came within earshot of the two.

One of the cats stopped and turned around to face her. The calico queen fell to the ground and held her head in her paws as she saw the approaching Jellicle.

"Rumpleteazer," hushed Cassandra as soon as she got to the two, worried – where had she _been_? "What happened to you? Are you all right?" She took the weeping calico into her arms. "Shhh, shhh, you're all right, I'm here for you now."

Cassandra looked up to the other calico, the tom carrying,

_Jemima!_

"What have you done to her?" the Burmese demanded fiercely, bearing her claws as she quickly stood, leaving Rumpleteazer to weep for a moment. Mungojerrie, eyes wide and startled, started to slowly back away from the enraged queen.

A quiet paw-step sounded behind her. She whipped around to come face-to-face with a rough-looking black-and-white tom, bleeding from various deep scrapes on his chest and legs.

"He didn't do anything," the tom said flatly, as he shot out his paw and wrapped it around her slender neck before she could react. "I did."

Cassandra saw that he had already been injured, so she kicked out to his belly, claws out, where four long cuts were. She hit home, and the tom immediately dropped her, grabbing his stomach in pain. The fierce queen then went in for another strike, this one to the head, but her paw was caught and thrown off course by the injured tom. He yelled a loud, battle-like cry as his paw connected to her temple.

……………………………

"Wha'd you have t' do tha' for?" cried Rumpleteazer in dismay, hurrying over to the collapsed Burmese queen.

"She would have tracked us down, told her friends where we were going, or any number of disastrous things!" Fencer snapped, hissing at her. "What was I supposed to do? I had to kill her."

"You could 'ave jus' threatened her!" shouted Mungojerrie.

"Wait, no!" Rumpleteazer held her head close to the fallen queen's mouth. "She's alive, jus' unconscious."

"Well, do you want me to finish the job, then?" yelled the elder tom, enraged, as he put a paw around her throat.

"NO!" shouted a voice, coming from the house that Cassandra had come out of. Mungojerrie turned to see a black-and-white splotched Jellicle charging at Fencer, fangs and claws bared.

"Get the hell off of her, you bastard!" the younger tom roared as he vaulted himself towards his taller rival.

Fencer put up his arms in a desperate defense, but merely was slammed to the ground by the enraged Jellicle.

"Alonzo?" Rumpleteazer whispered, dumfounded at the splotched cat's anger.

The cat who was Alonzo glanced up for a moment. "Teazer?" he asked, amazed at who she was with.

That amazement ended when Fencer upper-cutted the younger tom, sending him flailing through the air. Alonzo returned to his feet after only a moment, however, and took a good look at who he was attacking.

"Fencer, you son of a Pollicle!" he shouted in enraged recognition. "First Victor, and now my mate? When will your insanity end?"

"_When I'm dead!_" Fencer let loose a maniacal howl, which was completely unlike him, and then turned to the calicos, a dangerous light hovering in his eyes.

"Leave," he ordered them, in a voice not at all his own. The elder tom then turned to Alonzo once more. "So, if you want no one else to get hurt, I'd suggest killing me now, if you can."

Alonzo started towards the insane cat, preparing to jump and kick into the opened wound upon the black striped cat's chest. Fencer managed to dodge, but Alonzo, flailing in an attempt to turn about in mid-air, clubbed the other's throat by accident. The elder tom grasped his throat as he stumbled back, choking, before finally falling unconscious, slumping against the brick wall of an apartment.

Alonzo shakily picked himself up, and looked about for Rumpleteazer and the other tom. They were nowhere in sight.

_Why the hell was Teazer with them?_ he thought.

Cassandra gave a moan. Alonzo tenderly gathered his mate into his arms and started on his way to the junkyard.

_I have to tell Skimble that she's okay._


	8. The Truth

Chapter One- Lies

Chapter Eight- The Truth.

Mungojerrie sprinted down the alleyway, straight into Macavity's corridors. Rumpleteazer followed close behind, making sure they weren't being followed.

Hera heard them coming into the thieves' lounge. She stalked out, and frowned when she saw only the two calicos. "Where's Fencer?" she demanded of the partners in crime.

"Last time I checked, he was fighting a cat, holding him off so that we could get here in one piece," Mungojerrie informed her, collapsing onto a pad of cushioning out of exhaustion, placing Jemima gently beside him.

Rumpleteazer fell to the floor against a wall and started to sniffle.

"Oh, honey, he'll be all right," Hera soothed the crying queen, kneeling down and taking the calico into her paws.

"I know he will be," she replied. Hera stared at her, as though the moon had fallen from the sky. "I'm more worried about her." Rumpleteazer lifted a paw and pointed to Jemima. "She's been out for over half an hour."

Mungojerrie quickly turned and checked on Jemima. "Oh no," he exclaimed. "She ain't breathing!"

"_What?_ Oh, _Everlasting_!" Hera bolted to Jemima. "Quick, Jerrie, put your mouth to hers and breathe out."

"_Wha'?_" he asked, dumfounded at the demand.

"JUST DO IT!" the black queen shrieked at him.

Mungojerrie nodded and, putting his mouth gingerly onto the kitten's, exhaled deeply.

"Again! Hurry, we might lose her!" Hera ordered as she probed the kitten's neck for any problems.

Mungojerrie quickly lowered his head and exhaled again, more so this time. Hera pushed in on a spot on the young queen's neck. Hera made the spot make a 'pop', and then pressed down firmly upon the young queen's stomach.

Jemima's eyes suddenly fluttered open. Mungojerrie sprang backwards as she gasped for air. She coughed up a hairball, and then fell back onto the cushions, gasping for breath.

"Wh-where am I?" she finally asked, voice quivering in fear and lack of air.

"Don't worry about that now, just breathe in and out slowly," Hera ordered gently, putting a paw upon Jemima's chest.

The little queen nodded and started to breathe, calming slightly.

"Thanks for mentionin' tha', Teazah," whispered Mungojerrie. "You jus' saved her life."

"How were you carrying her, Jerrie? On your back?" Hera asked the calico tom.

"No, it was more like this," he replied, creating a cradle-like shape with his arms.

Hera stood up and slapped him hard across the cheek.

"_Ow_!" he yelped, shocked at her unexpected response. "Wha' was tha' for?"

"You idiot! No wonder she suffocated!" she screeched at him. "Her neck must have slipped and been pushed up against your arm, making a fold in her air passage!"

Mungojerrie shied away, tail drooped by his legs. "Sorry," he apologized, softly.

"You _should_ be!" Hera replied in disgust. "How could've you not known that would happen?"

"I 'ave no 'medical knowledge', or wha' evah you call it, at all!" Mungojerrie snapped back. "I see blood, I know it's bad, okay?"

Jemima coughed a little and spoke up. "He didn't mean to hurt me-" Another cough interrupted her defense of the tom. "He promised he wouldn't."

"A promise is only as good as the cat it comes from, and I wouldn't trust _you_ as far as I could throw you," stated Hera, glaring at Mungojerrie irritably.

"I can't throw him, but I trust him," Rumpleteazer insisted, in complete honesty. She quickly piped down as she remembered that Jemima was awake. But it was to no use.

"Rumpleteazer?" cried out the little queen, anxiously.

The calico queen stood and hurried over to Jemima. "I'm here, I'm here. Don' get excited, jus' breathe," she ordered the kitten gently. Rumpleteazer then took the little queens head into her lap and looked up to Hera.

"Wha' do you think he'll do t' her?" she asked, concerned for the well-being of her friend.

"I don't know what he wants her for," admitted the black queen remorsefully. "It could be any number of things, from being a thief to having a new … play-thing." She pronounced the last word carefully, as if dealing with something mildly disgusting.

Rumpleteazer frowned and fiddled with Jemima's head fur. Mungojerrie dimly heard her saying, 'It'll be alright, I'm here for you,'

_What _does_ Macavity want from her any ways?_ he thought apprehensively. _She's jus' a kitten!_

His thoughts were interrupted by a wheeze from the tunnel to the outside. He unsheathed his claws and hissed heatedly at the noise.

Fencer walked in, paws pressed to his chest as he tried to keep in all the blood from his numerous deep wounds.

"Fencer!" Hera stared at her lover in shock. "What _happened_?"

"I was attacked," he replied distantly, only half aware at what was going on. "Three times." He coughed up a little blood into one of his paws. He stared at it vacantly. "That can't be good…"

"Mungojerrie! Go into our quarters," Hera commanded frantically. "Get some cloth so I can stop him from bleeding to death. Go, hurry!" So saying, she hurried over to the older tom and started trying to clean some of the nastier wounds.

Mungojerrie raced into Fencer's room to find some bandages. He nearly fell over a long rail, stuck in front of the doorway to keep people from bailing over the ledge. He looked to the mattress that looked as though it was very likely stolen, and not from a nearby dumpster. It was covered in velvet and other comfortable sheets. The tom hurried over to the mattress and grabbed a light bed-sheet. He ran back out and gave the sheet to Hera.

"Thanks, Mungojerrie," she muttered distractedly.

"Yeah, sure," replied Mungojerrie, suspiciously eyeing the black-striped tom. "No problem."

The older queen quickly ripped the sheet in two and tied it around Fencer's chest. By the time she was done, both sheets were a dark red.

"Wow," came an appreciative voice from the throne room hallway. Rumpleteazer jerked her head around to see Macavity in the doorway.

"Whatever happened to you, Fencer?" the crime-lord asked, fake concern fairly dripping from him.

Fencer coughed again. "They will come, if that is what you wanted to achieve, Macavity," he informed the formidable tom.

"Not entirely," the ginger cat confessed. "But it will make this entire operation far more interesting." He turned his head to Rumpleteazer. "Now, if you will give the kitten to me-"

"No!" the calico queen replied stubbornly, baring her fangs, getting in front of Macavity to protect the resting kitten. Mungojerrie tensed, eyes flicking between the queen and the tom.

"Alright, then." Macavity walked lazily up to the shielding queen and, with a quick, liquid movement, took her by the neck. Rumpleteazer hissed and began to claw at his arm, but the crime-lord merely threw her into a wall. The calico smacked her head against the wall and collapsed onto the floor, limply.

Mungojerrie growled in disapproval, but did not strike out, for if he did, he knew Macavity would lose his patience and probably kill him, or worse. This self-preserving instinct did not, however, prevent him from racing to the young queen's side, fur bristling in anger. The self proclaimed Napoleon took up Jemima by the scruff of her neck and began to carry her into the throne room.

"What do you want from her, Macavity?" Fencer gritted out as he slowly, painfully, stood to face the ginger cat.

"I don't want anything _from_ her," he explained, a frightening grin playing across his face. "I merely wish to tell Jemima the truth." He laughed, a bone-chilling sound, and walked out into the hallway from which he had come.

Mungojerrie waited until Macavity had left before putting his ear down to her mouth, listening for sounds of her breathing. Once satisfied that she was all right, he tenderly lifted her and walked towards their quarters. As he walked, his mind was overflowing with questions. _Wha' does Macavity mean by 'the truth'? Wha's gonna 'appen t' Jemima? An' why does he want those other cats t' come 'ere?_


	9. Bloodlines

A/N- This is only one chapter, I know

A/N- This is only one chapter, I know. Unfortunately, the editing process is going slower than planned, therefore, to prevent myself form uploading crap, I updated 'Bloodlines' for you all. Reviews are replied to at the bottom. R&R please, it makes me feel better.

Chapter Nine- Bloodlines.

Munkustrap lifted his head off the ground, finally coming awake after being knocked unconscious by Fencer several hours before. "Ow," he grumbled as he rubbed his temple with a grimy paw.

He looked to the sky to check the time. To his dismay, the sun was already halfway to the western horizon. _Dear Everlasting Cat! I've been out of it for _that_ long? _he thought frantically. What could have happened to Jemima by then, he didn't even wish to dream of.

He shook his head, wincing, and started to carefully climb back down the wall, heading towards the Jellicle junkyard. _Next time, I _will_ wait for Tugger, or Alonzo,_ he sternly reminded himself.

The tabby managed to get to the alleyway floor with little trouble. Munkustrap then turned and began to race back home, where he had many companions to help him with his mission against these most dangerous of cats. _This time, I'll bring Mistoffelees with me._

Mungojerrie finally managed to tear himself away from the side of the sleeping Rumpleteazer to seek out Fencer. He had some questions to ask that unnerving cat – questions he intended to get answers for. The calico found the older tom in the thieves' lounge, still sprawled out upon the cushioning he had collapsed atop over half an hour ago.

"Hi," began the younger tom as he sat on the cushion opposite of Fencer. The other cat made no move to reply. Undaunted, Mungojerrie continued, "So, what exactly happened back there?"

Fencer sighed. He knew Mungojerrie would ask him this. "That was me, beyond my breaking point."

Mungojerrie blinked. "An' tha' means…?"

"Means I was a two-edged sword instead of a kitchen knife," he elucidated. "Means I've gone into my _other _state, which means trouble you've not known."

"Your _other_ state?"

"Yes," Fencer muttered. "When I'm completely immersed in my objective, I take no chances and find the quickest way possible back home. And if that means killing someone, then so be it."

Mungojerrie shivered involuntarily. "So, why are you workin' for Macavity, then?"

Fencer sighed. "When you join into that cat's line of work, you _cannot_ leave, unless he frees you. Which he never does. The _only_ reason I'm working for him is because he can crush my innards with a mere glance."

Mungojerrie shook his head in disbelief after a moment of wonder. "No, no," he protested, trying to not to believe the older tom's words. "Tha' isn't possible."

"I wish it were so, but it's the truth." replied Fencer, his voice cool and unchanging, his gaze level.

Mungojerrie shook his head quickly, as if to shake off Fencer's words. "But _how_? How in the name o' the Everlastin' Cat could he do somethin' like tha'?"

"He's a conjurer," Fencer responded shortly. "And a pretty good one, at that."

"So why does he want the kitten, then? Is _she _a conjurer?" Mungojerrie asked, frowning as he tried to puzzle out the new information.

"If she was, he'd probably order us to kill her, so I think not," the black-striped cat mused thoughtfully.

Mungojerrie groaned and shook his head – he wanted all thoughts of such an atrocious deed firmly out of mind. _Why _does_ Macavity want her so badly, then?_ he fretted to himself.

Munkustrap waited impatiently back at the junkyard for Alonzo to return with Skimbleshanks. His younger brother had told him that Rumpleteazer was alive, but under the captivity of another calico tom as well as Fencer, which all led back to Macavity – a place he really _didn't_ want to dwell on.

Alonzo appeared from across the street, running towards the junkyard, and, racing along side him, was the Railway Cat, Skimbleshanks.

"Munkustrap!" cried the orange tabby as they approached. "My daughter is alive! We must go and rescue her!"

The black-and-silver tabby nodded and loped up to meet him. "I know she's alive," Munkustrap told his friend. "Alonzo told me before he went to gather you." Skimbleshanks nodded and ran a paw through his head fur, letting out a long breath. "I'm going after her and Jemima," the guardian added in an effort to comfort the elderly cat.

Skimbleshanks looked up to the silver tom, eyes wide. "They have your Jemima?" he repeated, his voice filled with disbelief.

Munkustrap nodded quickly, his ears flattening against his head. "The bastard's minions stole her right from under my nose," he hissed, his claws scraping at the ground. "I _will_ get her back."

"We'll all get her back," Alonzo assured his elder brother. "And we'll have the others to help us."

"We can't take everyone," Munkustrap warned. "If we abandon the junkyard, then Macavity's agents could easily take _all_ our kittens. We will go in with only a few."

"Aye, the lad is right," Skimbleshanks agreed with a sigh. "But I'm going, whether you want me to or not."

"And we're not going to stop you," Alonzo assured him. "Although, Mr. Mistoffelees had better be coming, too. I _won't_ take on both Macavity _and _Fencer without the guarantee of some friendly lightning strikes."

Munkustrap nodded. "That was my plan," he agreed softly.

Alonzo looked over at Skimbleshanks. "Go tell Jenny. And see if Tugger has found Mistoffelees yet." Skimble nodded, and ran off at once to find his mate. Alonzo then turned back to his brother. "We _will_ get them back," he murmured, putting a paw onto Munkustrap's shoulder. "And this will _never _happen again."

He could barely hear Munkustrap's reply. "It won't. I'll make sure of that."

Rumpleteazer slowly lifted her head. Her vision slowly came back to the light, along with a bump the size of a grapefruit on the back of her head. Or, at least, it _felt_ like a grapefruit.

_Where's Mungojerrie?_ she wondered vaguely as she looked around the room. _Let's see…_ She frowned as she began to recall what had happened before. _We brought Jemima in, Fencer comes in the door, Macavity says to give Jemima to him, I say no, he knocks me out…_

Rumpleteazer cocked her head as she thought that last part. "Oh Everlastin' Cat," she exclaimed she fully realized what had happened. "Jemima!"

The calico queen sprang out of bed and started down the hall. However, she soon staggered and fell, her vision going dark as the blood rushed away from her head because of her sudden movement.

"Hey!" called a voice that was familiar, but faint. "Hey! Miss calico queen!"

She felt two paws lift her up and shake her by the shoulders. Slowly, the darkness before her eyes faded, and she saw Tamerang holding her by the shoulders, his eyes filled with concern.

"Oh thank the Everlasting Cat, you're all right!" he cried when he saw her open eyes, embracing her. "I saw Mungojerrie take you into the room and he told me you were out cold! I was worried that you wouldn't get back up!" Tamerang hugged her tighter and nuzzled her head-fur.

"I'm fine," said Rumpleteazer managed, gasping. "Where's Jemima?"

Tamerang held her away slightly and stared at her. "You just spo-"

"I know I did!" the queen snapped, cutting him off with a frustrated look on her face. "_Where. Is. Jemima?_"

Tamerang's paw shook as he pointed down Macavity's main hall. "The kitten is in there with Macavity, if that's who you mean," he told her faintly.

Rumpleteazer nodded quickly, and took off down the hall. _If tha' bastard does _anything_ to her, I will kill him. I swear on Victor's death, I _will_ kill him._

Macavity grinned to himself as he put the kitten down upon the floor in front of his throne. She immediately collapsed to the floor, paralyzed with fear, her eyes wide and filled with terror.

"How are you?" he asked with a smile. The crime-lord tried to keep his normally frightening smile as friendly and soft as he could, but it still looked horrific on his face.

Jemima hid her face from her 'torturer'. Macavity could hear her raspy breaths, and saw her tail quivering.

"Why do you remain silent, young queen?" he asked gently, lightly petting her back as he knelt beside her. "You have nothing to fear here. All obey the bloodline of Macavity."

The frightened kitten lifted her head. "But I'm _not_," she observed quietly, her voice shaky.

Macavity gave her a strange, leery grin quite unlike his earlier attempts. "Yes you are…"

Jemima's tail twitched to and fro in her confusion.

"… my daughter."

**Krissy4**- Well, thanks for, erm, 'loving me'. No, I'm being very serious. I love reading your reviews. Also, I think Straussburg pie tastes something like cherry cream or cheese cake. I don't know for sure though.

**OMGitsASH**- Whew. Thank goodness you read it again. Alonzo is far too old to be Rumpleteazers mate, cause she's only about a year old. On the other hand, Cassandra is around two and a half or so, so she is fine as his mate. I also love all three of them. And I do hope that your Alert works this time.

**Eminems6**- Delivers Staussburg pie Here you go. I hope you like it. Also, although this is only one chapter, it does progress the story a bit. And I am planning a sequel, and a Prequel, so this story is no wheres near finished.

**Sailor Star Rozen**- Yes, he is an awful cat, yes he _should_ be in the pound, no he isn't going to be put in there by me. I'm gonna need him later. Anywho, enjoy this Chapter!!

Also, if anyone missed Eminems6's reply, _I am making a sequel and a prequel_ to this story. I hope I get them done in a plausible amount of time to continue with everything else. I also hope that they are as good as this story.

One more thing; I _might_ give some spoilers away next update about the sequel... But I'm being nice and giving off a prequel hint. Hope you figure it out.

And the hint is...Dramatic drumroll; **Victor.**


	10. Failed Plan Part One

Wow

Wow... I haven't updated in a very long time, and you're all being very patient and nice. Well, I decided to place chapter ten, part one up. It ends in a vastly mean and nasty cliffhanger, so if you don't like cliffhangers, wait for chapter ten part 2 to come up.

Otherwise, Enjoy!

Reviews replied to (maybe out of order) on the bottom of the page.

Chapter Ten- Failed Plan

Munkustrap looked at his friends as they assembled before him. _I _must _be going crazy – who in their right mind would ever go into Macavity's lair _willingly he thought worriedly, already having doubts about the plan.

"Munkustrap," came a voice from behind him, which sounded very much like Tugger's.

Munkustrap turned around to see Tugger approaching, the normally shy and reserved Mr. Mistoffelees at his side.

"Mistoffelees, you do know what we are about to do here, right?" asked Munkustrap, hoping that Tugger had given the conjurer more than a rough description of what was to happen.

"I know exactly what I need to do," replied the tuxedo cat firmly, a hint of hatred mixing into his normally quiet and pleasant voice. "You can count on me, Munkustrap."

The silver tabby nodded as a red-coated queen walked steadily up to him.

"I'm going," the attractive queen informed the guardian. "And you _aren't_ going to stop me."

Munkustrap eyed her curiously. "Bombalurina, you aren't normally the type to go and fight someone this quickly. What's up?"

She glared at him fiercely. "First that son of a Pollicle uses both my sister and myself as play-things, then he steals my sister's daughter away? Trust me, he won't get away from this one without at least one scar from me."

Munkustrap smiled, placing a friendly paw on her shoulder. "I'll trust you on that," he assured the enraged queen.

"Well…" Tugger drawled as he slowly started backing away from the group. "I'll, just … keep an eye on the kittens, yes?"

"You do that, son," Skimbleshanks agreed absent-mindedly, motioning for Tugger to leave.

Tugger nodded, turning briefly to the tribe's guardian once more. "Good luck, Munkustrap."

"Thank you, Tugger," the tabby replied.

Alonzo walked up to Mistoffelees. "So," he began. "Can you instantly transport us to the lair, or no?"

"Not directly into it, but nearby," the conjurer informed him. "But I still need some energy to use on lightning. Not to mention healing in case someone gets hurt."

"If all goes to plan, then no one will get hurt," snapped Munkustrap. At a warning glance from Mistoffelees, he made a visible effort to calm himself. "Fencer is wounded from fighting Cassandra, Alonzo and I," he continued. "And Macavity will be caught with little help, considering most of his thieves are away on a heist."

"And we are sure of this …?" asked Skimble cautiously.

"Yes," replied Munkustrap, a note of surety in his voice. "Tantomile and Coricopat looked in and assured me of it."

"Well, then," Bombalurina spoke up, unsheathing her claws. "Shall we go kill the bastard now?"

Mungojerrie headed towards the room in which the sleeping Rumpleteazer lay. Or at least, he thought she still lay there.

He rounded a bend to see Tamerang, with his paw pointed towards the hallway to Macavity's throne room. The tom's eyes were wide in confusion, his tail agitatedly twitching.

"Wha' happened?" the calico demanded of the stunned cat.

"The calico queen asked where 'Jemima' was, and she took off. She was very angry, too," replied the dumfounded tom.

"Oh Everlastin'," Mungojerrie breathed as he sprinted off towards where Rumpleteazer had gone.

The calico tom rounded the corner to see Rumpleteazer bounding down the hallway towards Macavity's throne.

"Teazah!" he cried desperately, but with no success. The queen shrugged off his plead and leapt to the back facing throne upon which Macavity sat. She toppled it, claws bared and hissing. Macavity, startled, spun around to see Rumpleteazer take a swipe at his face as she toppled the throne. The ginger cat spat angrily as he quickly leapt away, the queen's claws just grazing his cheek.

Rumpleteazer quickly took the opportunity to gather up Jemima and start for an exit. But Macavity recovered with incredible speed, grabbing the calico's scruff and dragging her backwards. Rumpleteazer frantically shoved Jemima towards a hallway to the surface, but the kitten was too frightened to move, and instead collapsed, helpless, onto the floor.

"You have just signed your death warrant, kitten," Macavity growled, glaring at the helpless calico fiercely, claws digging into her neck.

"_You let her go_!" shouted Mungojerrie as he bolted towards Macavity, a fire blazing in his eyes. He jumped with his claws unsheathed and managed to tackle the ginger cat. Macavity, however, was not caught off-guard and quickly used Mungojerrie's momentum against him, rolling backwards while planting a paw in his attacker's stomach. The calico tom flew into a wall upside-down and cracked his head against it, slumping to the ground.

"The two of you are _dead_ now," Macavity hissed, moving rapidly to the fallen Mungojerrie. "I'll start with you first," he added, lifting the smaller tom with ease and ramming him into a wall. The ginger cat then lifted his paw, his vicious, trademark claws extended.

"Goodbye," the Napoleon of Crime said with a wicked grin. He drew back his arm, ready to plunge his claws into Mungojerrie's defenseless form.

**Krissy4**- I like your thinking, but you're a little off about Tamerang. Please, feel free to hound me about not updating and review.

**Sailor Star Rozen**- I'm sorry about another cliffhanger, but the rest just isn't edited. It takes a while for me to edit, while my sister has a job, I have an twisted ankle and my mother hogs the computer on occasion. But anyways, please feel free to review once more.

**Eminems6**- Your very welcome for the pie. I have more which I will hand out next update. (Which WILL be sometime THIS week.) (Mental note.) And yes, I proof read, and then my sister does. And then I post.

**oathkeeper91**- As implied by your name, I hope you and all of my loyal reviewers will keep me to my promise. Anyways, here's more for you! (And the lot of the rest of my readers. Whoever reads and dosn't review, please feel free to make some comments of your own.)

**Madame Enjolras**- Don't get mad at me please... I'm trying very hard to update lately. But it's a very slow process. And yes. Rumpleteazer is very cute. So is Jemima. (to me). Oh yes. Not that I want you to die, but I hope you don't mind just a little more suspense.

**Adi Sagestar**- The plot thickens S'MORE!

As always, reviewers will get cookies, cakes and other assortments of baked goods with their next replies. Go ahead. Don't wait any longer.

Review.


	11. Failed Plan Part Two

Okay, so here's part two of three

Okay, so here's part two of three. Yes, it ends abruptly. I know. I was kinda ticked off with it, but there wasn't anywhere to stop, so I updated as far as I could go.

A note to Krissy4: Please don't kill me.

Failed Plan: Part Two.

Mistoffelees led the small group of Jellicles to an old abandoned building, slowly falling apart at the outskirts of the docking areas.

"Here we are," the small cat announced quietly, twitching his tail.

Munkustrap looked about skeptically. "What a hideout." He sneezed derisively. "Now…" He turned to face the other cats. "You stay with me, Alonzo – we'll be taking care of Fencer and Macavity. Skimble and Bombalurina will go find Rumpleteazer and Jemima, and Mistoffelees…" he paused, trying to find the right phrase.

"Just take care of everyone?" the tuxedo cat suggested.

Munkustrap nodded with a relieved grin. "Yes, that."

The tabby then turned back to the entrance. _Here we go…_ he thought nervously. He took a deep, reassuring breath, and then padded forwards into the abandoned building.

Alonzo hastily trotted after him, wanting to keep his brother in sight. Bombalurina hissed as she sprinted in, her eyes gleaming with hatred, her fur bristling. Skimbleshanks followed close behind Mistoffelees, mind completely set upon getting his daughter back.

Munkustrap entered into a small, drafty room with few pieces of cushioning, one of which was stained with blood. And a lot at that. _Oh dear Everlasting,_ he thought frantically. _Don't let that be Jemima's._

After quickly scanning the room, he bounded towards another entranceway, peering around the corner to witness Rumpleteazer crawling to Jemima, who was lying limp on the floor. He looked up and saw Macavity drawing back his arm, ready to impale a young calico tom with his claws.

"_No, you don't!_" roared Munkustrap, lunging forwards.

Macavity snapped his head about, his claws missing their mark and plunging into the cat's shoulder instead. The tom shrieked in pain and dropped to the floor instantly.

Alonzo hissed as he leapt over the charging Munkustrap, trying to catch Macavity by the neck while his brother knocked him down. The crime-lord, however, anticipated the younger tom's lunge and ducked, smirking as Alonzo flew over him; however, he couldn't turn fast enough to avoid Munkustrap, who was barreling at him like a torpedo through murky waters. The silver tabby crashed into his side, snarling ferociously, scraping at the other cat's side with his claws. Macavity let out a tremendous yowl, tearing at Munkustrap's back.

Rumpleteazer hissed in terror as the battling toms moved closer, trying to drag Jemima out of the way. Her fur bristled as the heady aura of electricity filled the air, making her paws itch. A sudden, blinding flash of lightning appeared, slicing its way through the air to Macavity. The ginger cat was thrown to the other side of the room as a loud crack resonated through the air, landing in a boneless heap.

With that dramatic entrance, Mistoffelees sprang into the room, throwing a second lightning bolt at the crime-lord. He gestured frantically towards the entranceway with his free paw, which was still crackling with electricity, and out raced Bombalurina and Skimbleshanks, speeding towards Rumpleteazer and the kitten.

"Daddy!" Rumpleteazer cried in relief as she tried to lift Jemima off the floor. Halfway through the motion, however, she fell over, feeling as though something was draining energy from her very body.

Skimbleshanks looked over and his eyes widened. A flow of bright light was emanating from his daughters back, finding its way back to the injured Macavity's outstretched paw. "Teazer!" he shouted as he ran to her, worried the evil conjurer may be killing the young queen.

Mistoffelees glared at Macavity, absolutely furious. He sent two more lightning bolts Macavity's way, but could only watch, aghast, as the stream of light attracted them instead, drawing them to Rumpleteazer. The magical cat cringed at the sound of her pained scream, its horrid sound blasting through his mind.

Bombalurina yowled in rage as the lightning hit Rumpleteazer. Hissing in fury, the queen lunged towards Macavity and the two guardians. The crime lord spun and slashed at her with his long claws. She skipped away, ducking under his outstretched paw to lash at his belly.

Macavity grunted in pain as the queen's claws tore into his chest. Leaning forwards, he allowed Alonzo to slam into his back, using the extra weight to force Bombalurina away. As she retreated to avoid getting pinned, he caught her leg, three claws slicing deep trenches into her thigh. The queen slumped, yowling in pain, as Munkustrap once again lunged for Macavity, taking advantage of his momentary distraction.

"You shall _never_ lay your paws on my daughter again," hissed Munkustrap as he grappled with the ginger tom. "Or Rumpleteazer, or Bombalurina, or _any_ Jellicle."

Macavity cackled wildly, his teeth held mere inches from the silver tabby's face. "You _really_ think you can stop me from getting what I want?" He laughed maniacally as spun, throwing Munkustrap into Alonzo, who had been attacking his back.

Across the room, Skimbleshanks was frantic – Macavity was _killing_ his daughter, and he had no idea how to stop it. Glancing upwards, he spotted the small Jellicle conjurer standing helplessly to side of the ongoing fight. "Mistoffelees!" he cried urgently. The tuxedo tom turned, and, seeing the elder tom beckoning, raced over.

"Help her," Skimbleshanks pleaded – he was no sorcerer, he had no knowledge of these awful tricks. But Mistoffelees – he was the spell-wielder; _he_ was the magic-master. He would know what to do. And, indeed, the small tom looked grateful for having something to help with as he bent over Rumpleteazer's limp form.

Meanwhile, the three-way fight between Macavity and the Jellicle toms raged on. Alonzo and Munkustrap had finally managed to think clearly enough to develop a sort of strategy – one would occupy Macavity at the front, while the other dodged in and out, striking at the fierce tom and then racing out of range. But what they hadn't counted on was Macavity's skills as a conjuror – the more they struck at him, the more he seemed to be places he wasn't. Alonzo, fed up with this "cat-and-mouse" strategy, finally lunged once more at the crime lord, only to sail harmlessly by where he had _thought_ Macavity was. Turning slightly, the ginger tom closed in on Munkustrap, who was distracted by Alonzo's off-balance crash-landing.

About to tackle the silver tabby, Macavity was suddenly slammed to the floor for the second time that day by an orange cannon.

Brave though Mungojerrie's renewed attacks were, they were far too weakened by his wound to do much damage. Almost immediately, Macavity sunk his claws into the calico's neck and threw him once more into the wall, where he slumped, unmoving.

Before Macavity could make another move, a loud crack resounded throughout the room as Mistoffelees threw one last lightning bolt, the flash momentarily blinding the ginger tom. Oddly enough, the bolt didn't hit Macavity, but struck the far wall behind him.

Through the ringing in his ears from the loud clap, Munkustrap heard a faint creaking. In a flash, he realized Misoffelees' plan, and shoved the disoriented Macavity as hard as he could towards the now-shuddering wall. Macavity stumbled slightly in surprise, but did not fall.

He didn't have to.

With one last shudder, the wall collapsed. Macavity was almost instantly buried beneath the falling rubble, his final, furious screech cutting through the noise of falling brick. Bombalurina gave a high yowl as she darted towards the wounded calico tom lying slumped by the collapsing wall, only just managing to pull him out of harm's way. Once they were clear, she collapsed from the strain of moving on her wounded leg.

Munkustrap let out a sigh of relief when, as the dust settled, Macavity did not get back up out of the rubble. Taking a deep breath, he turned to face his weary companions. Mistoffelees running towards Bombalurina and the calico tom, apparently finished with Rumpleteazer. Skimbleshanks was gently cradling his exhausted daughter in his arms. Alonzo stumbled towards them, still slightly off-balance from the heavy blows Macavity had dealt him. Munkustrap finally, wearily, began to pad towards Jemima – his precious kitten! – when a sharp yowl from Mistoffelees stopped him.

"Munkustrap!" the magician called urgently. "I need your help!"

It took what felt like an eternity to reach the tuxedo cat's side – but once he did, Munkustrap understood the need for urgency.

The young tom's shoulder had what amounted to a great, gaping hole in the middle of it. Well, maybe not a _complete_ hole, but a great amount of shoulder was _missing_, and blood was flowing from it like water. Mistoffelees was doing his best to stem the flow, but there was just too much overall damage. Cursing under his breath, Munkustrap frantically cast about for some kind of fabric to help stem the flow.

Replies:

**OMGitsASH**- Sorry 'bout that... but it dosn't end there, apparently. Here's some Straussburg pie.

**Madame-Enjolras**- Why, in the name of the great everlasting cat would I _ever_ kill one of my absolute favourite cats? Here's some more stuff for you to comment on. And your Straussburg pie.

**FlyingShadow666**- Honestly, I hate cliffhangers too. And I know I'm good at them, and I don't mean to be good at them. Straussburg pie is being delivered now. (Other note: I have run into a door before. It hurt, a rather lot.)

**Krissy4**- Helping! Helping! Please don't kill the author! I sprained my ankle recently and I now have the time between my family outings and my mother hogging the computer to get on and update. Here is some,... erm, no, ALOT of Straussburg pie. I hope you like it. (The story and the pie.)

So, people of go ahead and review. I trust that thee has the will to hound me more, and Part three will most likely be out by midday tomorrow. Until then, my apologies for being absent for such a long time.


	12. Failed Plan Part Three

Okay

Okay. So I was wrong. This update came sooner then expected. I'd better not get _any_ complaints. I hope you all like it.

On a completely random note, my sister and I have been watching _far_ too many musicals. _"My name is Richard Henry Lee, Virginia is my home!"_

(To anyone who can guess which musical this is from, praises be and extra baked goods await thee!)

Failed Plan: Part Three

_Previously …_

With one last shudder, the wall collapsed. Macavity was almost instantly buried beneath the falling rubble, his final, furious screech cutting through the noise of falling brick. Bombalurina gave a high yowl as she darted towards the wounded calico tom lying slumped by the collapsing wall, only just managing to pull him out of harm's way. Once they were clear, she collapsed from the strain of moving on her wounded leg.

Munkustrap let out a sigh of relief when, as the dust settled, Macavity did not get back up out of the rubble. Taking a deep breath, he turned to face his weary companions. Mistoffelees running towards Bombalurina and the calico tom, apparently finished with Rumpleteazer. Skimbleshanks was gently cradling his exhausted daughter in his arms. Alonzo stumbled towards them, still slightly off-balance from the heavy blows Macavity had dealt him. Munkustrap finally, wearily, began to pad towards Jemima – his precious kitten! – when a sharp yowl from Mistoffelees stopped him.

"Munkustrap!" the magician called urgently. "I need your help!"

It took what felt like an eternity to reach the tuxedo cat's side – but once he did, Munkustrap understood the need for urgency.

The young tom's shoulder had what amounted to a great, gaping hole in the middle of it. Well, maybe not a _complete_ hole, but a great amount of shoulder was _missing_, and blood was flowing from it like water. Mistoffelees was doing his best to stem the flow, but there was just too much overall damage. Cursing under his breath, Munkustrap frantically cast about for some kind of fabric to help stem the flow.

_Present ..._

"What in the name of _Hell _just happened!" demanded a startlingly loud voice from along one the narrow hallways leading out of the destroyed room. Moments later, a black queen with a large white splotch raced into the room, eyes wide and ears flat. Clenched in her arms were several torn, bloodstained blankets. Alonzo hissed and sprang towards her, but she made no move to avoid him as she took in the destruction around her. A snarl from Munkustrap interrupted her shock.

"Those blankets!" he snapped as she turned towards them. "Give them here!"

For a moment, it seemed as though she might refuse – but then her gaze landed on the calico tom.

"Not _again_!" she cried, breaking away from Alonzo to race to Munkustrap's side. "Oh, move _over_, I need to _see_!"

"Who are you?" the Jellicle guardian demanded, but she merely twitched her ears at him, already wrapping up the young tom's shoulder with brisk efficiency.

"My name is Hera," she finally replied, moving slightly back to allow Mistoffelees, who had been attending Bombalurina, at the wound once more. "But that's not important right now. You need to get Mungojerrie _away_ from here, _far_ away, because – Macavity! Where is he?" She jerked upwards in a panic, as though the crime lord would descend upon them at any moment.

"Relax," the silver tabby sighed. "He's over there – under the wall."

She glanced backwards briefly – the look on her face told them that she didn't believe he would be there for very long.

"You _have_ to get away from here," she said tightly. "And _he_ needs rest, and warmth and care – can't you take him somewhere?"

"What about you?" Mistoffelees asked, his quiet voice silencing the others. "You obviously know him."

Hera frowned. "I can't keep him safe. Besides …" She looked downwards. "He doesn't belong here, anymore than the kittens do."

Munkustrap sighed, but didn't disagree. "Can we move him?" he asked Mistoffelees, who nodded wearily. "Fine. Alonzo …"

As Alonzo moved forwards to take charge of the wounded tom, a young black and white tom rushed in from yet another hallway and looked around the room with shocked eyes. "What happened?" he asked, staring first at the bleeding cats around him, then to the tumble of brickwork that had buried Macavity.

"Tamerang," Hera began sharply as the Jellicles tensed all around her, but she was cut off when the younger cat's eyes fell on the fallen form of Rumpleteazer.

"Little miss!" he cried, obviously stricken. He started towards her, but a low warning growl from Skimbleshanks halted him still a few yards away.

Munkustrap, who had just started to rise, turned back to Hera. "Anyone else in here we should know about?" he asked dryly. "A bevy of geese, perhaps? Or maybe a few dozen Pekes?"

She hissed slightly at him. "No, just rats and invalids," she snapped. "Now get out of here!"

The silver tabby didn't reply, but instead made his way – finally! – to his daughter's side. He let out a long sigh as he crouched beside her, rubbing his head comfortingly against her neck. At her father's touch, the young kitten stirred from her frightened paralysis. Looking around, she began to shake.

Munkustrap purred reassuringly as he gathered her up in his arms. Looking about, he found Alonzo standing with the young tom – Mungojerrie, Hera had called him – slung over his shoulder, while Mistoffelees helped Bombalurina to her feet, Skimbleshanks managing to lift his daughter with only a little effort.

Hera watched the procession grimly. Turning, she headed towards one of the small hallways, calling back over her shoulder; "Come looking for us, and we'll _kill_ you."

Munkustrap only lashed his tail in reply as the caravan of tired, limping cats made its slow way outside, making their way home through the fog of the midday sprinkle.

Now... Review replies...

**FlyingShadow666**- Yes, it is, it is. Very horrible. But it gets better! (btw: the thingy about doors was from your account. I copied it onto mine.)

**Madame-Enjolras**- The story ain't over yet luv. This is the last of chapter ten though. And thanks for sayin that it gets better each update. : )


	13. Clearing Eyes and Minds

A/N- Guess who decided to edit his story after a while again? Oui Mesdames et Messieurs, tis I.

I recently felt this pang of guilt over someone, and I was misrible. So, I decided to listen to some piano music. In that moment, I suppose I could say, my life changed. Literally. I realized that there is more than just feeling sad in life.

Needless to say, I don't think all of you really care about my personal life as long as I update my story. So, here it is, at last.

Chapter Eleven of _Some Rather Confusing Turns of Events._

* * *

Chapter Eleven- Clearing Eyes and Minds.

Rumpleteazer awakened upon a flat piece of wood covered in cushions. Her bleary vision slowly cleared as blinked her eyes continuously. Once able to see cleanly, she recognized the interior of Jellylorum's _'Fixin' box'_. She shook her head in hopes of her vision becoming less blurry.

_What happened? _She eventually thought as she tried to move, causing stiffened muscles and aching bones to cry out in anguish.

She eventually managed to make herself to look about her surroundings. The first thing she saw was Mungojerrie lying on bedding next to her. His right shoulder was bandaged, and his head was wrapped up, making him look like a mummy.

"Mungojerrie," she whispered as she reached over to him, but she leaned too far over and her limp body slid right off of the bedding. Rumpleteazer lay crumpled on the floor, in shock as well as confused. She tried to lift herself off the floor, but her paws buckled at her elbows and she fell to the floor once again.

"Rumpleteazer!" came a scolding like voice from behind the calicos back. The queen glanced behind her and saw Jellylorum scampering over to her.

"Jelly, I'm okay," Rumpleteazer insisted weakly, but the elderly queen shook her head.

"No you are _not_, young miss," she said firmly gathering the young queen up and setting her back on the plank of wood. "You are weak and sickly. I will not allow you to leave this box until you can stand on your own. But," Jellylorum sighed. "I can't stop your father and mother from coming in, so you will be able to do something besides rest." Jellylorum lifted up a sheet from a neighboring pile of bedding, and placed it over Rumpleteazer's thin form. "But you need at this moment the most is rest. Now." The elderly queen rubbed the calico's head with her paw. "Get some sleep."

Rumpleteazer nodded, and attempted to shift her sight to Mungojerrie. His bandages were all a dark red, including the one on his head. He had not moved at all since the calico queen had awakened. _He'll be fine,_ she assured herself. _All he needs is to rest…_

* * *

Munkustrap limped his way through the junkyard to Jellylorum's box so he could replace some of his bandages, for those of which he wore then had become quite itchy. He stopped to stretch a little, and then yawned. After spending a minute or so completing said action, he spotted Skimbleshanks and Jennyanydots heading to the box themselves.

"Good morning, Jenny, Skimble," Munkustrap greeted halfway cheerfully, waving to them with his better arm. "Going to see if Teazer is up yet?"

"Yes," replied Skimbleshanks in the same tone. "Are you well?"

Munkustrap nodded with a grin. "I'm fine, it's just these bandages," he said, itching his head. "They're really itchy."

"I bet they are," observed Jennyanydots. "And you look like a half-wrapped mummy."

Munkustrap began to laugh, but stopped quickly as his chest protested any major movement of itself, though he continued to grin. Jenny was right too; the way Jellylorum wrapped him up, he _did_ look like one of those Egyptian what-cha-ma-call-its.

Skimble hurried over to him and supported the silver tabby, leading him into the box. Jennyanydots followed closely, trying to see over Munkustrap's shoulder.

"Oh you're here," Jellylorum said in surprise, and motioned for Munkustrap to move to a can seat. "What's wrong now dearie?"

"These are itchy," the guardian informed her with a wince once he sat down.

"Well, I'm not going to change them," the queen replied to him.

Munkustrap stared at her sternly, holding his side bandages in place. "Why not?" he demanded, trying to cross his arms, but stopping as his arm, like his chest earlier, protested against such an action.

"If it's itchy then they're working," Jellylorum explained, glaring as sternly as he did her. She walked over to the tabby couple, while folding up a sheet.

"How's Rumpleteazer?" asked Jennyanydots, moving to her daughter's side.

"She'll be all right," Jellylorum informed the concerned queen softly. "But it will be a while, considering the damage done by Macavity." Her voice dropped to a near whisper as she said the name.

Skimbleshanks went up to the elder queen. "What did he do to her? Macavity, I mean."

Jellylorum nodded. "He said that Macavity used some sort of spell, which weakens the target, and the victim's energy then strengthens the caster. Or something like that. I'm not knowledgeable in magic."

Munkustrap stood once more and limped his way to the calico tom's side. "How is he?" he queried, concerned, for the tom had not stirred since Jellylorum had bandaged him.

"I'm not sure," Jellylorum replied honestly, in a sad tone. "Tantomile and Coricopat have been coming in everyday to see how he is. I don't know what they think of it."

Munkustrap continued to stare at the tom, eyes glazed over in concern. "I hope they tell us soon then," he murmured as he began to leave the box.

* * *

Jemima had been back for several days now, and she slowly began to go out and play again. Today was Sunday, and quite the liking to the name, it was sunny. An odd occurrence in April, when it usually sprinkled or rained all day.

"Hey Jemima!" called a voice from behind the kitten, who was lying out on a broken car hood, trying to take a nap in the sun.

"Huh?" she replied dimly, as she opened her eyes, squinting into the light of the day.

"Jemima!" came the voice again, as the owner of it bounded up next to her. She looked up and saw Tumblebrutus hopping up onto the hood of the broken car.

"Hi Tumble," she said sleepily as she turned to face him.

"Hey, we've been looking all over for you," the kitten said, breathing a little between words. "We were supposed to go and play hop-the-junk today, remember?"

"Oh, yeah, that's right," Jemima remembered and looked to the ground. "Sorry, I forgot, I guess."

Tumblebrutus frowned. "Are you all right?" he asked, ears going forward in concern. "You haven't been yourself lately. You didn't even chase after _Tugger _yesterday! I thought you loved to do that."

Jemima glanced up at her friend. "I dunno, I just… well…" she tried to explain, scratching the paint of the car with a claw meticulously.

"You're still afraid?" suggested Tumblebrutus, hoping to be helpful.

"No! I'm just… distracted. That's all," she replied decidedly, her eyes steady with determination. She looked back up at her friend, who was sitting by her, "Are you still playing?" Jemima grinned and cocked her head as she had always done when she wanted to go and be with her friends.

"Yeah, let's go!" Tumblebrutus exclaimed and bounded towards the piles of junk from which he had come. "Follow me!"

Jemima smiled and raced off after her friend. Maybe today she'd get her mind clear of things.

* * *

Yeah. I was listening to Yiruma's _River Flows in You _while editing this. Hope it shows.

Oh right! Review replies!! Eeee, I haven't done this in so long.

**The Penguin Ate My Homework-** Thank you for saying this is original. I first started writing it when I was in ninth grade, when I was sick for a week and watched nothing but CATS. After a while, I decided, "Hey, I could write something about them!" So I did. I hope you're happy with it. :-)

**Krissy4-** I have always appreciated the support and the dedication of your reviews, and your constant support of my work. I don't think I can say anything except that I love you. Here's a years supply of strausburg pie, for waiting on me for so long.

**Kita Via-** Thank you for the compliments! I love it when people are blown away by my work. It makes writing so much more the worthwhile. Old Deuteronomy isn't out of the picture, have no fear. He has his own entrance later. Oh, and Tugger is Jemmie's uncle, Munk's bro.

**Gryffindor. Princess1014-** My plan was merely to write something that people could read and enjoy. If it jumped out at you and you thought it was that fantastic, then I must have done better then I could have ever hoped for. Enjoy the story, as I attempt not to fall off the earth again.

**Madame-Enjolras-** Thank you so much for waiting on me, just as paitiently as Krissy4. I feel horrible for making all of you wait so long and wanted to make it up someday. I hope this will supply for a while.

**fantasymonk-** I think it gets better too, as I improve as a writer, of maturity and value. I also think that those two are the best couple in the musical, period. So yes, they are _extremely_ cute and loyal.


	14. How many kittens does it take

A/N- I'd better have made someone's day or I'll feel like I wasted my time on this...

HELLO AGAIN! Welcome back to SRCToE, which has been updated for the first time in....

...

Let's not dwell on that shall we?

Anywho, I felt I deserved to update this for all of you, my happy readers. I've been slightly overwhelmed this week, so this entire thing was kinda spontaneous. Track started, All County is in two weeks, I've got my SAT coming up, I've got two Math tests to do, I've got to finish an AP Literature essay, I got accepted to SUNY Fredonia's summer music program, and I've got a 'Spring Fling' to help out with and attend.

Kinda hectic.

But I still love you all! All of my readers and reviewers get straussburg pie.

* * *

Jellylorum walked into her medical box in the morning, yawning tiredly. The night's storm hadn't let her get to sleep until late at night. Cassandra had agreed to help her today though, which was a good thing, considering that all the kittens had insisted that they should be able to see Rumpleteazer today. And once they set their mind on something, they didn't stop pleading and begging, which they were particularly good at. She sighed and glanced over to Rumpleteazer's bed. It was empty.

"Oh no," Jellylorum exclaimed, mind racing at where the older kitten could be. Finally after searching most of the room, she looked at Mungojerrie's plank, where an unusually cat-like lump was lying beside him. The elder cat slowly lifted the sheet and found her missing queen, fast asleep at the tom's side.

Jellylorum shook her head in disapproval, but she even thought, in the corners of her mind that, in fact, they did look rather lovely together. But as quickly as those thoughts entered her mind, she tossed them away and replaced Rumpleteazer to her bed.

Cassandra walked in once the older cat had turned to see what she could do for the calico tom.

"Good morning Jelly," greeted the Burmese cat, scratching the back of her head. Cassandra yawned and stretched her graceful limbs out, trying not to disturb any precariously piled objects in the box. "How are they doing?"

"Well Rumpleteazer is most definitely getting better," Jellylorum informed her friend, grinning slightly. "But the tom …" She stopped talking, holding her words back as Rumpleteazer stirred, awakening from her sleep.

"Hello Rumple," Cassandra addressed the little calico, sitting down on the edge of the little queen's bed. "Did you sleep well?"

Rumpleteazer blinked and realized she had been moved from Mungojerrie's side. With some confusion, she replied, "It was … well enough." The young queen looked over to the tom. "How is he?" she asked, suddenly regretting the question as she feared the answer.

"He is alive, if that's what you're concerned about," reported Jellylorum, smiling at her, oddly. "Coricopat and Tantomile should be here in a bit. They'll tell you more probably."

Rumpleteazer's ears twitched at the grin the elder cat had given her. The striped cat obviously had moved her from Mungojerrie's side before she awoke, from what the kitten could guess. The calico queen glared at her, the look practically shouting _I did no such thing!_

"_You_ are better though," Jellylorum continued, glancing to the entrance of the box. "In fact, I decided you were well enough to let your friends to see you today."

Rumpleteazer's glare quickly was replaced with an exited grin. "Really?" she yipped, in her usual, hectic way.

"Yes, but don't get out of hand," warned Cassandra, staring at the kitten firmly. "Lots of kittens in one box, with not much room, all hyper, equals chaos."

"I'll try not tuh," Rumpleteazer replied, trying to hide her excitement somewhat. _My friends can see me today!_ she cried in her head, smiling even more broadly.

Jellylorum was happy to see that the kitten was excited. She hadn't been smiling this much since she had been brought back to the junkyard. Yes, today she would have some fun.

And it was about bloody time, too.

………………………….

Victoria waited outside of Etcetera's den, impatiently frowning. Her friend _always _slept late, no matter what went on that day. The white kitten began to pace outside the dresser, when Jemima walked carefully up, with Plato and Tumblebrutus following her.

"Hi Victoria," greeted Plato, cheerfully. Victoria smiled and waved a shy paw in response. Jemima giggled at her friends, knowing all too well that they could hear her. Those two had been born three months before her, leaving them as the oldest kittens, besides Rumpleteazer.

Tumblebrutus went over to the entrance of Etcetera's den ears foreword, looking for sounds from within it. "Isn't she up yet?" he asked, an impatient look on his face.

"No," answered Victoria, shyly looking to the younger tom. "I've been waiting here for a while, but she still hasn't woken up."

Plato sighed and scratched his head. "You know," he began, sagging onto a plushy bear like thing at his side. "She _is _the one who convinced Jellylorum to let us see her. You'd think she'd be up the earliest for it."

"I know," said Tumblebrutus, nodding in agreement. "And yet she can sleep through it."

Jemima shrugged and looked down. Her face suddenly brightened, and motioned to her friends to come over to her. "I have an idea," she announced. The rest of the kittens gathered around her.

"What?" inquired Plato, cocking his head to one side.

"Let's play a joke on her once she wakes up," she explained. "How about we do this…"

………………………….

Electra slowly rose up from her bedding, yawning and stretching out. She looked about the contents of her friend's dresser den, which was piled with junk. But Etcetera wasn't there. The brown kitten cocked an eyebrow in confusion, then looked to the entrance flap of the den. No one was there.

"Oh no," she moaned tail drooping. "I overslept!"

The kitten made her way out of the dresser drawer, searching the area for signs of her friends. Yet again, no one was there, but the place had an odd feel about it. Like someone was waiting for her to go somewhere.

"I'd better get going to Jellylorum's," she reminded herself, remembering what she got up to do. Electra quickly hopped off in the direction of Jellylorum's little 'medical box', listening to the early morning birds sing peacefully.

Meanwhile, Tumblebrutus waited for the kitten whom he thought was Etcetera to round a corner of junk, so he could signal to Plato, so _he _could swing down from the perch he was at, to surprise the kitten.

"C'mon," he grumbled at his friend's slowness. "What's taking her so long?"

He saw a shadow reach the bend, one of a kitten about Etcetera's size. Tumblebrutus smirked and signaled with his paw to Plato, who had just finished tying a string to his lower paw. Plato saw the signal and waved back, then went about hiding behind a broken chair leg.

Jemima grinned at her friends, seeing her plan was going well. "C'mon Victoria," she whispered to the white kitten beside her. "Let's go."

The two walked out of the junk- crevasse that the rest of the kits had hidden in and started to meander towards Jellylorum's place. Jemima threw a glance over her shoulder, still walking slowly to the box. She saw Electra, not Etcetera round the corner. Her eyes widened as she saw Tumblebrutus frantically waving to Plato, who seemed to understand.

"Aww," Plato sighed as he turned to untie himself from the string.

Suddenly, a bright, "Hello!" was shouted and Etcetera fell in front of him.

"AAACK!" he cried, stumbling backwards in surprise. He quickly lost his balance and careened over the perch, being stopped by the string right in front of Electra.

"YIE!" the flabbergasted kitten screamed as she fell over onto her back.

Jemima and Victoria raced over to Plato to untie him from the string. Tumblebrutus giggled as he ran down to help Electra onto her paws again. Both Jemima and Electra gazed up to see Etcetera laughing hysterically, rolling over onto the edge of the leg of the chair.

"You should have _seen_ the look on your eyes!" Etcetera exclaimed between fits of giggles. "They were _this wide_!" she added, making obscenely large circles with her claws.

Plato frowned and grumbled, "That wasn't very fun for me." Jemima grinned as she let loose the upside down kitten, who nimbly flipped over onto his paws.

"Shall we go now?" he asked, still furious with Etcetera's joke.

"Yes, we _shall_," replied Tumblebrutus, smirking wildly as Etcetera made her way down the junk pile.

"How'd you know we were going to do that?" inquired Victoria as she ushered Electra and Jemima to Plato.

"I watched you guys. So I decided to scare Plato," Etcetera explained innocently. "I didn't know you were going to try and surprise me."

"Sure you didn't…" mumbled Plato as he rubbed his ankles, frown still sitting upon his face.

………………………..

Rumpleteazer sat on her little plank, still excited about her friends coming that day. But her excitement was overrun by her concern for Mungojerrie, who still would not move. Her mind was riddled with questions when Coricopat and Tantomile stalked in.

"Hello," greeted Coricopat quietly, barely moving as he let his sister through to Mungojerrie's side. He followed suite and moved to the other side of the tom, eyeing the calico oddly.

"Is he gettin' bettah?" asked Rumpleteazer, worried at what the outcome of the question would be.

Tantomile looked over the toms form and grinned slightly. "He is, actually," she informed the distressed queen. "That's new," she continued, placing a gentle paw on his forehead. "He seems to be, happy, though he is unconscious."

"What do you mean, 'happy'?" inquired Cassandra, rising up from her seat and approaching the twins.

"What we mean is," began Coricopat awkwardly, trying to explain in the simplest terms possible; which ended up sounding excessively corny. "His unconscious mind is far more… _cheerful_ than it has been. This is a vital role in his recovery."

Jellylorum stared at the black scarred cats, dumfounded. What did he mean by, 'happy', and 'more cheerful'? 'Vital role in his recovery'? Then, she remembered where she had found Rumpleteazer that morning, and smiled to herself.

Rumpleteazer completely ignored Jellylorum's smirk and listened to the twin cats talk about how Mungojerrie was doing. _He wasn' gonna die,_ she thought smugly to herself. _He couldn't 'ave._

The young queen watched in wonder as the two black scarred twins preformed some spell over Mungojerrie. She couldn't see anything, no lights no 'magic dust', but she felt warmth emanating from where the calico tom was. It was almost as if a fire had been set in a cozy lodge, but no burning or spattering of wood, and no glow from any fire. It was just, _there_, giving comfort to whoever needed it.

Rumpleteazer waited a while, then lifted one of her legs back onto the plank and held it with her paws, bringing her chin to her knee impatiently. _Wha's taking so long?_ she thought after the spell had been in process for more than three minutes. _Isn' magic s'posed t' be quick?_

Tantomile finally raised her head, along with her brother in their strange unison. "He will most likely awaken today," she announced, grinning broadly.

Coricopat nodded in agreement and smiled as well, but not moving until his twin did. It was almost like they were one entity with two minds.

Jellylorum smiled again and nodded, holding the flap open for the magical twins. "Thank you, very much," she thanked the two as they walked out.

"Our pleasure," replied the twins in unison. On her way out, Tantomile unexpectedly cocked her head to one side and sniffed the air. "It seems you will have visitors in quick coming," she turned back to the box.

"Don't let her get too excited." ordered her brother, pointing in to Rumpleteazer, who was engaged in conversation with Cassandra. "They're her friends."

"Ah," said Jellylorum, remembering that she _had_ decided to let the other kittens see their friend today. "Yes. Thanks for the warning."

"Not a problem," replied Tantomile, smiling kindly. Then, she and her brother left; going to anywhere they felt like being, side by side, each movement of one in unison with the others.

"Those two kinda freak me out," murmured Rumpleteazer as Jellylorum re-entered the box.

"Don't mind them," said Cassandra, as she moved to sit upon a small canister. "They're just," she paused, looking for a word. "Intuitive?"

"Maybe, but they're _still_ sorta weird," the calico queen agreed, shrugging her shoulders.

Jellylorum held in a giggle forcibly, for it would insult Rumpleteazer. Every kitten was scared, disturbed or 'freaked out' by Coricopat and Tantomile. But they didn't mind, sometimes even using it as a joke.

Rumpleteazer heard a crash from outside the box and turned her head to face it. There was Etcetera, being rolled through the flap by Plato.

"About time you let me do that," he grumbled, frowning a little. He looked up to see his calico friend sitting on her bed with a wide grin on her face. "Rumpleteazer!" he exclaimed, making the rest of the kittens rush in.

"Teazer!" cried Jemima as she was shoved in by the others. The young queen leapt over to the calico's side, embracing her warmly. "I thought I'd never see you again."

Rumpleteazer smiled and hugged the kitten back. "Yuh know me," she said cheerfully. "I always come back if I 'aven't said 'goodbye' yet."

Jemima just squeezed harder, causing the older queen to begin to wheeze slightly.

"Um, Jemima," came Victoria's shy voice from the back. "Might you want to let Rumpleteazer go so she can breathe?"

"Oh yeah," stammered the young queen, embarrassed. She smiled at Rumpleteazer and shifted back a bit.

"How're you doing Teazer?" asked Tumblebrutus apprehensively.

"I'm bettah," she replied, still slightly out of breath. She stared at the six kittens before her. "Where's Pouncival and Admetus?"

"They're helping out Alonzo stand watch, I think," informed Plato, scratching the back of his head.

The kittens continued to talk for some time, mostly it was the small gang of kittens telling what their friend had missed in her captivity.

Mungojerrie opened his eyes, just enough to see several kittens huddled around Rumpleteazer, talking feverishly. _Wha' the,_ he thought, in serious confusion. _Wha's up with all those weird kits?_ He tried to make a movement, or a sound, but his mind slipped up in the pain in that was smoldering back of his head, and he fell back to sleep.

* * *

REVIEW REPLIES

(I can't remember which ones I replied to last, so I'll go for three this time. If I missed yours, then I'll try and include it in the next update).

Krissy4- I seriously can't believe that you haven't tracked me down and killed me for not updating yet. LOVE your reviews, and I hope you appreciate the work I had to go through to do this today. And a saucer and cream would cheer up Jemmie. She told me so.

Kita Via- Yes, I updated. Yes, I'll try and keep it up! (Hands pie.)

soccerstar7- I feel an immense amount of energy rolling off of you just by reading your review. You've got to calm down occasionally. But I really appreciate knowing that you think the same way I do. Oh, if you want more Mungo/Teazer, go see _Krissy4_'s account. She has quite a few stories that I love very much.

Anyway, you guys know the drill.

R&R. I shall try not to die and I shall try to update.


	15. Home Again

**A/N**- Yeah, I felt guilty again. I think I edited this one... well, I did, but that was third period study hall, and I was half asleep, so I don't know how well I did it.

In any event, I think that I've done better this year with editing and updating on a semi-regular basis (IE: every three months or so). I know that people like this story and I did have a sequel planned. Now, if I could only remember what it was about...

Hey, everyone wish me luck! I'm going to a NYSSMA (... Did I spell that right?) solo competition tonight, and I'm gonna try to get into Area All State! I'm a Tenor 1 in case you were wondering.

Hey, enjoy the chapter, and try to ignore the fact that it's quality isn't that great. Yeah, that's it. Bye all!

* * *

Chapter Thirteen- Home Again.

Mungojerrie awoke again, much later in the day. His head certainly felt much better, along with his strength. He could actually move his tail, barely. He slowly tried to lift his head from the plushy cushion that supported it, but his body didn't make much of an effort, for he just couldn't lift it.

He was thirsty. His throat was dry from nearly a day without water. He was hungry too. The tom slowly made a second attempt to lift his head, but his action left him with the same outcome. The calico finally decided to just call out. It would be the best course of action, considering he couldn't do much else.

"Hello?" he whispered, barely audibly. "Anyone there?"

He waited a moment and rolled his eyes back into his eyelids. _Oi,_ he moaned in his head. _This isn't fun. Not at all…_

He tried turning his head to where Rumpleteazer's bedding was. The queen had her back to him, sitting up on her knees and talking with a strangely familiar Burmese.

"Hey," he whispered weakly. The two continued talking to each other, not noticing his efforts. "Hey," he repeated, but to no avail. He sighed quietly and breathed in as much as he could. "Hey!" he finally managed to say loud enough for one of them to hear him.

"Mungojerrie?" a comfortingly familiar voice exclaimed. The calico beauty rushed as best she could to his side, which wasn't that fast, but she was trying. Rumpleteazer made her way to him, face riddled with concern. She fell to his side and put her paw on his forehead.

"Are you bettah?" she asked worriedly, her paw stroking his head-fur gently.

"I'm awake," he replied, just loud enough for her to hear.

She smiled a warm, beautiful smile. Her face was like a comforting hymn from a human 'church', her eyes filled with delight. He once again realized the reason to live.

"How are you?" she said anxiously. "Can I get you somethin'? Water? Food?"

"A little water would be nice," he agreed, closing his eyes and cherishing the sound of her lovely voice.

"Okay, I'll get you some," she assured him and started off, but only to be stopped by the same Burmese queen.

"I'll get him some," she told the kitten. "You stay here and keep him company."

Rumpleteazer nodded and sped back to the tom's side. She placed her paw in his. "I was beginnin' t' miss ya," she confessed, glancing to the floor then back to him.

"I missed you too," the calico tom admitted, blushing slightly.

"I've been so worried about you," the frantic queen explained. "You haven't woken up in three days! You didn't even wake up in tha' big thunda storm last night!"

Mungojerrie gave a surprised look. "There was a thunda storm last night?"

Rumpleteazer nodded. "Yup. Bigger than the one the night you met me."

He cocked his eyebrows. "I must've really been out of it then…" he moaned as he shut his eyes yet again over again. The queen looked at him, slightly scared.

"Are you going to sleep again?" she asked, but no response came. "Well? Are you?" Rumpleteazer brought herself up and stood, looking at his eyes. They were shut, and he was fast asleep already. "Oi," she moaned, shaking her head. "Ya know, you coulda waited for the water."

………………………….

Rumpleteazer waited a few hours until Mungojerrie woke up again. He managed some water, before falling back asleep _again_. She groaned a little. _He wakes up from three days o' sleep, and then he wakes up for five minutes. Didn't he get enough sleep already?_ she asked herself.

Cassandra walked in with Mistoffelees. "Teazer," she said, quietly. "Mistoffelees is here to heal Mungojerrie some more. Do you want to stay here?"

Rumpleteazer lifted her head at the question. "Wha' do you mean, 'Do I want t' stay here?' Wha's that s'posed be?"

"Well, Jellylorum says that you can go and be with your family now," informed the queen. "She said that you're well enough to go home again."

Rumpleteazer flinched at that last phrase. _Go home again._ How long had it been now, a month and a half? Two months? How long had it been since she slept in her own bed, in her own den? How long had she not heard her father stumbling out of the den to go to the midnight rail? How long was it since her mother had the company of her daughter on those cold, rainy nights? _How long had she been made captive of Macavity?_

"Teazer?" Cassandra's gentle, sweet voice quickly split her thoughts of the former and brought her back to reality. "Teazer dear, were you listening? Your father and mother want to see you tonight." She paused, letting her words soak in. "They miss you."

Rumpleteazer looked to the floor in assessment of the choice. She slowly brought her voice up to answer, "I'll be there, but not now. Righ' now," she stopped, looking to the tom on the wood. "I have t' take care of him."

Cassandra nodded in understanding, then motioned for Mistoffelees to do his work. The magician shook his head once, and went to the sleeping tom's side, rubbing his paws together. He waved them over Mungojerrie's form, and placed them on his chest slowly. The tuxedo cat's brow creased in concentration and he muttered something incomprehensible. A soft light emerged from his palm, giving off the same warmth and feeling as Coricopat and Tantomile's spell, but visible. He continued for several minutes before the light slowly shuddered, and then faded from sight.

"That's all I can do now," he announced, wiping a trickle of sweat from his forehead. He glanced at Rumpleteazer, then quickly turned his head and left the box.

"Was he _blushing_?" inquired Cassandra, smiling at the calico queen playfully.

"He blushes a lot!" exclaimed Rumpleteazer defensively. She pouted and sat down, staring up at the Burmese queen.

"Well," the queen began, as she sat across from the little calico. "I'm pretty sure that he doesn't too much, and, though I'm no expert, think he _likes_ you."

"Yea, well, good for yer deep intuition Cassie," muttered Rumpleteazer, disapprovingly. She didn't like being at the end of match-maker jokes.

Cassandra laughed and shook her head, "No, I'm just toying with you Teazer," she said, giving in to the pout of her angered friend. "Now, I think you should head home soon. Your parents are waiting for you." The Burmese stood and left the box slowly, smirking at Rumpleteazer. The young queen waited for her elder to leave, then silently paced after her. She lifted the flap and saw the brown coated queen gracefully walking away, her tail waving from side to side, as if waiting for something. The calico smiled sardonically and chased after her. Rumpleteazer leapt and landed onto her friends back as she screamed in a playful way.

Cassandra easily stood her ground and hoisted the calico queen onto her back completely, racing about towards Rumpleteazer's home.

"Hahahahahaha!" Skimbleshanks exclaimed as any formal greeting escaped his mind while the Burmese queen raced about with his daughter on his back. "Teazer!" he called and Cassandra redirected her efforts towards him. The older queen finally made her way to the empty dryer, weaving precariously between small piles of junk, the little calico on her back laughing the entire way.

"Thanks Cassie," Rumpleteazer appreciatively said to her friend, once she was safely back to the entrance of the den. "I haven't had that much fun for a while."

"And you are very much welcome," replied the sleek queen with a slight bow. She looked up at Skimbleshanks. "I assume that I will see you later sometime?"

"That you shall lass," the orange tabby assured her, smiling broadly as his daughter came over and hugged him. He then looked at his daughter and said, "Now, you've had a busy day. I think you need some sleep."

"Oh, but dad," Rumpleteazer whined, sheepishly grinning at her father.

"No buts!" he ordered. "You're to go to sleep. You'll have all day to play more tomorrow. Now, off to bed with ya!"

Rumpleteazer did a fake frown and went into the den.

_Whoa._

She looked around, glancing at everything that her family's den had in it. There were little trinkets that she had found, pardons that she'd snatched from her father, everything she had seen from her mother's mouse knitting class, just _everything_! She looked at her own bedding and found it quite neat, obviously straightened out by her mother, considering she herself never fixed her own bed.

"We found your little stash of trinkets a little while back," explained her mother, smiling at her daughter's amazement in the normally empty dryer. "We felt that when you would come back, you should see all you have done, and realize, though your father and I don't like that you do it, that we still love you."

Rumpleteazer's eyes began to well up. "I love you too mum," she cried, leaping over to her mother and embracing her. "I love you too. And I'll nevah go away again."

The older queen stared at her daughter with her traditional 'Yeah right' look.

"Okay," admitted the calico, sighing. "Not without tellin' you first then!"

Jennyanydots grinned happily and took her daughter into her arms. "I'll hold you to that," she said as firmly as she could, trying not to laugh in happiness.

_Wow. _Rumpleteazer thought joyously, as her mother placed her in bedding. _I can't believe I'm home again._

_

* * *

_

You know the drill. R&R.


End file.
